‘We’re delighted to be live in the US for the first time, but we’re in no hurry to really build anything there too quickly’, notes Vera Motto, Business Development Executive at Habanero, as she explained the company’s reasoning behind the move into the US regulated market.
At the start of this week, Habanero confirmed its debut in the US regulated market after it unveiled its new partnership with Rush Street Interactive to launch its games in Colombia.
As part of the deal, more than 50 titles from Habanero’s portfolio of slots and table games have been launched on Rush Interactive’s Rush.co, as well as taking its full portfolio of 170 games live with the group’s US-based social casinos in the near future.
SlotBeats spoke to Motto about the company’s recent partnership, its ambition in American and how the perks of offering free-to-play slots in the US.
SlotBeats: You’ve recently announced your new partnership with Rush Street Interactive (RSI), with 50 titles from your portfolio launched on RushBet.co – can you tell us about the deal?
Vera Motto: While we’ve been live in Colombia for some time, RSI is almost in a league of its own when it comes to prestige – so it’s a great win for us. Colombia is undoubtedly one of the region’s hottest commercial prospects, and we look forward to working together in such a fast-growing market. RSI’s premium casino content is also one of the few operators working in LatAm with its own proprietary platform, so we’re certainly looking forward to the tech benefits too!
In terms of content, we’ll be going live together with many of the games LatAm players know and love, including Hot Hot Fruit and 5 Lucky Lions, as well plenty more. Partnering with LatAm’s most established US gaming operator of course opens other doors for us, such as with US social casino, where we’ll also be unveiling our entire portfolio to US-based players for the first time, which I’m very excited about.
SB: How does this deal help Habanero propel in the US market?
VM: We’re delighted to be live in the US for the first time, but we’re in no hurry to really build anything there too quickly. I have no doubt that it will become a big part of our plans one day in the near enough future, but for now we’ve already got our work cut out in Europe and LatAm.
It goes without saying, however, that launching with the US online gaming sector’s foremost operator is fantastic news. Boasting an impressive collection of industry accolades, Rush Street Interactive fully deserves its reputation as a market leader in the US and beyond.
SB: What are the perks in offering ‘free-to-play’ slots to a new market?
VM: With markets across the globe imposing new regulatory restrictions, obtaining approval can be a lengthy process. Habanero’s commitment to full compliance is unwavering, so offering ‘free-to-play’ slots is a way to introduce our games to players while we are awaiting certification.
As well as driving awareness of the Habanero brand, providing these games allows us to improve our understanding of local player preferences and adapt our offering accordingly. We’ve already seen great success in LatAm because we took onboard feedback from our initial partnerships and made sure we adjusted to what worked in the region for them.
Doing the same in the US via social casino will no doubt prove to be another invaluable way to better understand how to tailor our offering.
SB: What are Habanero’s plans in the near future to solidify yourselves further across the Americas?
VM: We’re watching everywhere! LatAm is so exciting right now in terms of potential. Looking beyond COVID and its short-term impact – the next decade holds plenty of opportunity in what is no doubt going to become the world’s fastest growing market.
At this point in time, we’re currently going through the process of obtaining licences for Buenos Aires and Panama, with certification expected in the coming months. We’re also well established in Colombia already – but always welcome the chance to make new friends and work with new partners.
Further north, Mexico has been entrenched as the region’s largest market for years, and we intend to keep building on our position there – as well as keeping a firm eye on developments on more exotic territories such as Puerto Rico.
We’ll also be boosting awareness of our brand by continuing to offer free-to-play games in certain new markets, so I’m sure we’ll be making our name with plenty of new players across the continent for years to come.
