Before Prediction Markets existed as a product you could actually launch, what were you thinking about the audience you weren\u2019t reaching?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: We\u2019d been investing in sportsbooks seriously for a few years, and the numbers were solid \u2013 retention, cross-sell between casino and sports, GGR growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But there was a clear signal of untapped demand: crypto-native users, people who follow financial markets, and politically attentive audiences. For them, the existing proposition did not resonate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019d look at volumes on platforms like Polymarket and see the huge demand forming outside the traditional sportsbook space. But that activity wasn\u2019t translating into our ecosystem. At that point, we didn\u2019t fully know how to fix it, but the gap was hard to ignore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kamenetskyi: A legitimate, high-volume betting segment has formed entirely outside the traditional operator ecosystem \u2013 and most of the industry chose to watch rather than act. Retail investors, politically attentive audiences, and technology-focused users \u2013 people who want to take a position on the events and information they follow daily. They were already spending money \u2013 just outside of the traditional sportsbook ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What were the igaming industry thoughts about this audience?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKamenetskyi: For quite some time, the dominant narrative in the industry was that prediction markets were just a crypto experiment or a temporary election-cycle spike \u2013 something interesting, but ultimately peripheral to the core business. That interpretation no longer holds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Monthly volume grew from $32m in January 2024 to $12.6bn in January 2026 \u2013 a scale shift the industry can no longer afford to dismiss. That is no longer a trend \u2013 it is a fully formed product category<\/strong>. And critically, almost none of that volume has flowed through traditional operators.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: We had a version of that internal debate too \u2013 trend or category. We weren\u2019t going to invest serious operational energy into something that peaks every four years. But then you watch what happens after the election cycle and the liquidity doesn\u2019t collapse. It diversifies \u2013 macro events, tech releases, geopolitical stuff. At some point the debate stopped being about the product and started being about timing<\/strong>. That\u2019s a different conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWas there a specific trigger that closed the conversation for N1?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: A few things landed at once. The Polymarket numbers got mainstream coverage. And then SOFTSWISS came to us, saying they are building Prediction Markets for igaming, and that they want us to be the first to go live with it. Having a ready, compliant product we could activate quickly \u2013 that was the argument that closed it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cP2P exchange means building liquidity from scratch on two sides. With Fixed-Odds, the operator manages liability within familiar bookmaking frameworks.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Why Fixed-Odds rather than replicating what exchange-style platforms are doing?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKamenetskyi: Because replicating exchange-style platforms is not a viable strategy for operators. A pure P2P exchange requires building and sustaining liquidity from scratch on both sides of the market, introducing KYC and compliance complexity that does not align with existing operator frameworks, and effectively giving up control over margin and revenue predictability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On top of that, the regulatory landscape<\/strong> for exchange models remains highly fragmented and uncertain across the US, the UK, and Europe. For most established operators, that level of regulatory and operational exposure is simply unjustifiable. Fixed odds is not a compromise \u2013 it is what makes prediction markets operationally viable for the B2B sportsbook model.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat does this mean in practice \u2013 for the operator and for the player?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKamenetskyi: The player bets against the house, not against another participant. The operator retains full control over the margin, prices markets through internal risk and trading models, and manages liability within established bookmaking frameworks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From the player\u2019s perspective, the experience remains simple \u2013 they take a clear position on an outcome, yes or no, without needing to understand complex market mechanics. From the operator\u2019s side, it fits directly within existing licensing and compliance frameworks. That is exactly what makes the model scalable and commercially viable. It allows operators to expand into a new category without changing their core business model<\/strong> \u2013 while maintaining control over risk, margin, and revenue predictability.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: That was important to us specifically. It\u2019s Fixed Odds. No P2P complexity, no exchange licensing requirement. The compliance story is straightforward. It meant we could make the decision without feeling like we were going somewhere entirely new from a regulatory standpoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cPlayers who hadn\u2019t placed a bet in weeks came back when they saw markets on things they actually follow.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Take us through the actual integration.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: It\u2019s faster than anything we\u2019ve launched recently<\/strong>. We\u2019re already on the SOFTSWISS Sportsbook, so it was essentially a CMS activation \u2013 configure the markets, set margins, place the widget. The technical lift on our side was minimal.<\/p>\n\n\n\nSo where did the work actually go?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: Internally. Deciding how to position the product, how to introduce it, what to communicate \u2013 there were real disagreements about that. And honestly, solving them took longer than we expected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some people wanted to explain the concept in full, and give players the context. We pushed back on that. In the end, we kept it simple: you can now bet on things beyond sport. Elections. Crypto. Tech. We showed players markets relevant to what they already follow. Getting to that decision wasn\u2019t instant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kamenetskyi: Most of the effort didn\u2019t go into technology \u2013 it went into product positioning and user experience. The binary format \u2013 will this happen or not \u2013 significantly reduces friction compared to traditional betting lines. There are no spreads, no accumulators, and no complex bet structures. For a casino audience in particular, it maps directly onto decision-making mechanics they already understand. The challenge is not in explaining the mechanics \u2013 it\u2019s in presenting the product in a way that feels natural and immediately relevant to the player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What other growing points did you see besides the new audience segment?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: Reactivation<\/strong>. Players who\u2019d been dormant \u2013 hadn\u2019t placed a bet in weeks \u2013 came back when they saw markets on things they actually follow. We knew the product would attract new types of players. We didn\u2019t expect it to bring back so many existing ones that had gone quiet. We watched the dashboard and that was genuinely surprising.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat have you actually seen since launch?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: We are seeing engagement from players<\/strong> that were not active before. Players are coming in through prediction markets and then they start exploring our sportsbook \u2013 the cross-sell is working. The reactivation we mentioned. It\u2019s early, though. We\u2019re still learning what content works for our specific player base, which events actually land. The numbers are encouraging, but we\u2019re not drawing hard conclusions from around a month of data.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat are you seeing across operators \u2013 is there a consistent pattern emerging?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKamenetskyi: The patterns are already clear \u2013 and they are consistent across operators. We consistently see three core effects: player reactivation, cross-sell into sportsbooks, and a significantly lower entry barrier for casino audiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Operators who have already launched the product are seeing these effects across different player segments. Volume data clearly shows that prediction markets did not collapse after the election cycle \u2013 instead, activity diversified and sustained across multiple event categories. At the category level, this is no longer a question of uncertainty \u2013 it is a question of execution. The remaining question for operators is not whether this works, but how effectively they can capture that value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cIf you wait until the category is proven beyond all doubt, you\u2019re waiting until your competitors are already live and your players are already somewhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
How long does the first-mover window stay open?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: It won\u2019t stay open at this size. Right now there isn\u2019t a crowded B2B market for this product. Operators aren\u2019t choosing between ten providers. If you wait until the category is proven beyond all doubt, you\u2019re waiting until your competitors are already live and your players are already somewhere else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kamenetskyi: The question of whether this is a real product category was settled some time ago. It is. The real question now is which operators will build brand recognition in communities that have never engaged with a betting brand before \u2013 crypto, finance, politics. That kind of recognition is not built through a product launch. It is built by being present while those audiences are still forming and defining their habits. And once those habits are formed, you cannot buy your way into that position retroactively. By the time the category feels \u201csafe\u201d, the first-mover advantage is already gone \u2013 and the audience is already captured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s the honest version of the uncertainty from here?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKamenetskyi: The main variable is how quickly regulation<\/strong> will evolve across different jurisdictions. Prediction markets are moving towards formalisation within existing regulatory frameworks. The uncertainty lies in the speed of that process. And that directly impacts how quickly the category can scale across regulated markets. Importantly, this does not affect the viability of the model \u2013 it affects the pace of expansion. Operators who move early can already capture value while regulation continues to catch up.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: For us \u2013 honestly, we don\u2019t know yet what the ceiling looks like. We know the floor. We\u2019ve seen it. Players are coming back, new segments are engaging, cross-sell is moving. But whether this becomes a core part of the product in two years, or something significant but secondary \u2013 we\u2019re watching it happen. We\u2019re not far enough in to say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Is there a version of this where the operators who waited were right?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKorolko: Maybe. If regulation tightens sharply in key markets, or if the audience turns out to be shallower than the volume numbers suggest. We don\u2019t think that\u2019s where it\u2019s going. But we made this call under uncertainty, and that\u2019s still true. We\u2019re just further in now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kamenetskyi: The operators who chose to wait were right about one thing \u2013 it is always a harder argument to make before the data exists. But that data now exists \u2013 and it is already consistent across the market. At some point, \u201cwaiting for more evidence\u201d stops being caution and starts becoming a missed opportunity. And in a category like this, missed opportunity is not neutral \u2013 it directly translates into a lost market position.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
N1 Bet was the first brand to go live with the company’s prediction markets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":176,"featured_media":25137,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":true,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"N1 Bet has become the first operator to integrate SOFTSWISS Prediction Markets, targeting a previously underserved segment of bettors interested in political, economic, and technological outcomes. This strategic move aims to capture significant GGR from crypto-native and financially-attuned audiences, which have historically transacted outside traditional iGaming ecosystems. The partnership highlights a B2B supplier's innovation in bringing a compliant, new product category to market, addressing substantial, untapped demand.","focusai_entities":"N1 Bet, SOFTSWISS, SOFTSWISS Prediction Markets, SOFTSWISS Sportsbook, N1 Partners, Polymarket, Alexander Kamenetskyi, Daniil Korolko","focusai_location":"","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.95), regulator (0.75), compliance_legal (0.85), operator_casino (0.98), product_ux (0.88), tech_data (0.8), marketing_crm (0.85), investor_analyst (0.97), supplier_vendor (0.98), journalist_researcher (0.95)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"Regulatory Hurdles?","query":"What specific regulatory and licensing challenges might arise for operators deploying prediction markets, particularly concerning event types like elections or financial outcomes, and how are these being addressed by early adopters and suppliers?"},{"label":"Fixed-Odds vs. P2P?","query":"Beyond liquidity management, what are the long-term strategic implications for operators choosing a fixed-odds model over a pure P2P exchange for prediction markets, especially regarding market depth, liability, and competitive differentiation?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[60616,60301],"tags":[2279],"class_list":["post-25136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-emea","category-interviews","tag-softswiss","press-release"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/176"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25136"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25136\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25138,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25136\/revisions\/25138"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}