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Customers at Nevada casinos will soon be able to engage in cashless wagering on table games and slot machines without physically showing identification.
Nevada gaming commissioners raised concerns ranging from the need for remote identity verification to the potential for identity theft, but ultimately voted unanimously on Thursday to approve a rule change allowing it. .
Current law allows customers to set up and fund cashless betting accounts remotely, but they must appear in person to verify their identity with a casino employee.
Commissioner Ben Kieckhefer said he supports “where customers want to be and maintain integrity…”
“It’s the same technology that allows you to take out a jumbo mortgage,” he said.
The rule change does not apply to betting on sporting events or races.
By downloading a smart phone app, a customer can complete identity verification and deposit money into a gaming account before leaving home, and start betting and spending remotely as soon as they enter the casino.
The American Gaming Association says eight states, including Nevada, currently allow mobile wallets.
“Cashless payments bring casinos closer to everyday life,” says the website of Sightline Payments, a digital commerce platform that submitted a petition to gaming regulators in September 2020 at the height of the pandemic to allow the in-house remote identity verification. patrons. “Fears about the spread of COVID-19 are leading to wider consumer adoption of mobile phone payment systems to avoid contact at cash registers.”
“Cashless transactions are rapidly replacing traditional cash payment methods and conversion has been further accelerated by the global pandemic,” says a document submitted to regulators by Sightline. “Gamers have become accustomed to cashless transactions outside of gaming in their daily lives, seeking contactless transactions due to social distancing and health concerns. … The possibility for a player to establish a betting account remotely is an essential element of this technological evolution.
“This change to enable digital identity verification for wagering accounts allows the Nevada gaming industry to leverage best practices from across the financial services industry to improve security and customer experience” said Jennifer Carleton, Sightline’s chief legal officer, in a press release. . “Nevada’s new regulations comply with federal guidelines allowing both new verification methods, including knowledge-based authentication, as well as traditional documentary measures such as a customer’s driver’s license or passport. .”
