Steven Valentine: “ICE has played a huge part in Comtrade Gaming’s growth”

Comtrade Gaming chief commercial officer sat down with Focus Gaming News for an exclusive interview discussing the company’s expectations ahead of ICE London and focus for 2024.

Exclusive interview.- In an exclusive interview with Focus Gaming News, Steven Valentine, chief commercial officer at Comtrade Gaming, provides insights into the upcoming ICE London event and the anticipated trends in the online casino industry.

What do you expect from ICE London 2024? What does it mean to be part of London’s last edition?

ICE this year marks our 20th anniversary in gaming! Over that period, we have established ourselves as one of the leading igaming Platform providers working with some of the largest operators, such as Superbet, Mansion and Dafabet. ICE has played a huge part in our company’s growth and has been the main event where we exhibit over those years.

We were there in the early days at Earls Court so the last show in London is a bittersweet moment before the move next year. This transition is not just about bidding farewell to a physical location but about embracing the evolving nature of our industry. It signifies our adaptability, resilience, and readiness to explore new horizons.

ICE London has been a cornerstone in our trajectory, and as we bid farewell to its London chapter, we look forward to the exciting possibilities that await us in the next phase of our journey.

What can visitors expect to see from Comtrade Gaming at the show?

We have some very exciting news this year at ICE as we showcase our new strategic initiative, our new games division, “CG Games”. Launching with an initial catalogue of 10 games, consisting of 8 high-end slots and 2 crash games. “Space Aviator” and “Crash Soccer”, both are multiplayer crash games that can be branded for individual operators.

Although the content space is already very crowded, we believe we have experience building games for other vendors in the past and already having our own RGS gives a great advantage. 

ICE London has been a cornerstone in our trajectory, and as we bid farewell to its London chapter, we look forward to the exciting possibilities that await us in the next phase of our journey.

What new igaming trends do you think will be discussed during ICE London?

I think rather than new trends the discussions will focus more on new markets and regulation. With the fight to get into the USA now calming down and many are left licking their expensive wounds, the attention has switched to Latin America and especially the latest market to regulate, Brazil. 

The other significant alterations are typically M&A-driven, determining who acquires whom. Although the prevailing financial conditions led to a decrease in activity in this realm, it will remain one of the most influential agents of change in 2024. This M&A activity has the potential to pose significant challenges for an operator, particularly if one of your primary vendors has just been acquired, leading to a potential shift in how they value your business compared to before.

What analysis does the company do about its debut at SiGMA 2023? What feedback did you receive from operators and visitors at the stand? 

Our debut as visitors at Sigma was interesting and perhaps a little chaotic. What the guys have achieved with Sigma over the years is huge and should be applauded, they have added real value to our industry. The Malta event however has perhaps become a victim of its own success. It attracts such a big audience which is great in one way, but the local infrastructure really does struggle to support a show of that size now. It would be great if that show could now move to a new location. 

What is the company’s main focus for 2024?

Our igaming platform (iCore) will always be our main focus. We are experts and migrating existing operators from other platforms. We actually don’t take on any new startup operators at all. There are always a lot of operators who are unhappy with their existing vendor.

It’s not that other platforms are bad, they have just typically outgrown the service level they receive and need a long term partner who can tailor the platform to their specific needs. That is exactly what we do for all our operators. We take on a very limited number of new clients and help them grow significantly and expand into new markets. 

The launch of CG Games means we can develop relationships with operators over time outside of our platform partnerships.

“Our iGaming platform (iCore) will always be our main focus.”

Steven Valentine, chief commercial officer at Comtrade Gaming.

What other industry events does the company plan to attend this year?

We plan to attend SBC Rio and IGB Live, we will also have a large stand at SBC Lisbon, and most likely Sigma Malta.