Resorts World extends cashless wagering to table games: ‘We’re doing things that the city has never seen’
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Resorts World Las Vegas plans to be the first casino in Nevada that allows gamblers to purchase chips from a table game dealer without having to flash cash.
Instead, the customer will flash their digital wallet attached to the property’s mobile app.
Cashless gaming capabilities for slot machines, table games and sports betting was part of a multi-tiered technology announcement by Resorts World on Wednesday.
Operators of the $4.3 billion, 3,500-room Strip property, which opens Thursday, said they partnered with five gaming technology providers to create a cashless payment program for both gaming and non-gaming activities throughout the resort, such as retail, restaurants and entertainment.
“When it comes to gaming technology, we’re doing many things that the city has never seen,” Resorts World Las Vegas President Scott Sibella said in an interview last week. “We will be more sophisticated than any casino in the world when it comes to technology.”
Nevada gaming regulators approved the use of cashless wagering technology last year. Wagering on slot machines through a mobile wallet has been increasing in the state, and most major gaming equipment providers have developed or are in the process of creating mobile wallets.
Resorts World is taking the technology a step further, by becoming the first casino in the state to allow a mobile wallet to fund table game play. The property’s mobile wallet, which was developed by gaming equipment manufacturer Konami Gaming, is part of the Resorts World mobile app.
“This is a seamless consumer experience to digitally transform the gaming industry,” said Sightline Payments CEO Joe Pappano. Las Vegas-based Sightline serves as the financial conduit, moving funds from a customer’s debit card, bank account, PayPal account or another source into the mobile wallet. The funds are FDIC-insured.
“The idea is not just connecting the entire casino floor, but also the non-gaming amenities at Resorts World,” Pappano said. “Resorts World will help accelerate this change in the gaming industry.”
Konami Gaming Chief Operating Officer Tom Jingoli said the launch of the system was “a significant historical moment” for both Las Vegas and the gaming industry.
“We set out to reinvent the hospitality experience in Las Vegas by bringing seamless interaction, leading-edge convenience, personalized engagement and catered service to every guest touchpoint,” Jingoli said.
The Resorts World cashless gaming system will technically be on a field trial when the property opens, said Gaming Control Board Chairman Brin Gibson. The system cleared the board’s testing lab, and Gibson can administratively approve the system after 30 days if there aren’t any issues. The maximum time the field trial could last is 180 days.
Resorts World’s 1,400 slot machines can be accessed by a customer’s mobile wallet via a wireless connection, often referred to as near-field communications. The player is then able to choose how much in wagering credits they want to load on the game. Players can cash out winnings back to their mobile wallet when the gaming session ends.
As for the property’s 117 table games, players create a QR code on their mobile wallet to establish their bankroll. A QR reader at the table then records the wagering total and the dealer provides the player with gaming chips once funds have been accepted. Cashing out is still accomplished at the casino cage.
“There was tremendous collaboration among the companies for this system,” Pappano said. Other technology for the property’s cashless gaming effort was provided by International Game Technology, NRT Technology and Genisis Gaming.
In April, Resorts World Las Vegas owner, Malaysia-based Genting Group, participated in a $100 million investment into Sightline that was led by Cannae Holdings, a firm headed by Vegas Golden Knights majority owner Bill Foley.
Sightline utilized part of the investment to acquire JOINGO, a Las Vegas-based mobile platform provider that developed the Resorts World Las Vegas mobile app.
Sightline cited statistics provided by the American Gaming Association that showed casino customers were interested in utilizing digital payments and mobile wallets following concerns raised during the pandemic. More than 60 percent of casino gamblers said they wanted a “contactless” payment option when they gambled.
The AGA has said casinos are one of the last cash-based industries in the U.S.
