Americas Cardroom CEO Phil Nagy Talks Crypto and Online Poker
Heading into this week's iGB Live! Amsterdam online casino affiliates event, organizers sat down with Americas Cardroom CEO Phil Nagy to discuss the hot trend in Web poker today, cryptocurrencies.
Last week, Gambling911.com reported on how cryptocurrencies like bitcoin now make up for nearly 80% of all transactions at Americas Cardroom.
Nagy suggested more conservative figures in his discussion with iGB Live!
"In the gaming industry, we were early adopters of cryptocurrency," he said. "We started taking Bitcoin back in early 2015, and now accept more than 60 cryptocurrencies for both deposits and withdrawals on the network. What started as 2% of our overall business, now accounts for 60%."
Nagy was set to speak on crypto at the Amsterdam show.
"In our session, we really want to try and take people through our journey of how we got to this point. As it is a new technology and unchartered territory for many, we had to create new processes to deal with everything you can think of, from security to customer service, to fraud and dealing with price fluctuation.
"We’re flying down a whole crew of people who are specialists in each field of our business, so they can discuss and educate those who attend the session. I think it will be extremely valuable for anybody who wants to learn more about cryptocurrency, its advantages, and things to look out for."
For bitcoin skeptics, Nagy offered some encouraging news as someone who works directly with the cryptocurrency on the merchant front.
"I’ve debated this a lot over the years with people. I’ve seen 'renowned' financial experts publicly compare it to previous bubbles such as the 'Tulip' craze that happened back in the 1600s. If you’re unfamiliar with this, the cost of tulips went through the roof back in the day until they realized it’s just a tulip, and everyone can grow them, and then the market crashed!
"At any rate, there are some big differences here in what blockchain technology and cryptocurrency has to offer versus something that has no value. Here we have a technology that allows you to transfer money to anywhere in the world for almost no cost, cut out the middleman, and allow for total public transparency for each transaction.
"Truth be told, its ability to disrupt the status quo of how we’ve always done business that has people a bit on edge. If massive fees and the dependence on financial institutions to move money become a thing of the past, there’s a lot of people who will be out of work. That’s a big reason why you’ve seen as much negative coverage in the press as you may have.
"But it’s the future, of this I’m sure. It may take time for much-wider adoption, but its uses are too many to dismiss as a fad or a bubble. It’s just far too practical."
Full coverage of the iGT Live! Amsterdam Affiliate event here
- Chris Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
