Sky Bet strikes industry-first with Apple Pay
Operator understood to be the first to integrate the mobile payment service in a boost to the customer onboarding process
Sky Betting & Gaming (SB&G) has become one of the first online gambling brands to add Apple Pay to its list of approved payment methods as the operator continues to ramp up its mobile capabilities.
Apple Pay was integrated into the Leeds-based firm’s Sky Bet, Vegas Casino and Bingo apps earlier this month to make it quicker and easier for iOS customers to deposit funds into their account.
The feature requires customers to already have Apple Pay set up on their iPhone or iPad and via the Quick Deposit section of the mobile app, players can use their Touch ID to deposit funds faster.
SB&G is understood to be the first operator to add Apple Pay to the firm’s mobile products in what is the latest of a long-list of industry-firsts on mobile for the company.
In 2014 the firm was also the first to integrate Apple’s Touch ID technology, a move which has since been replicated by many of its rivals including William Hill and Paddy Power. The previous year it unveiled a seamless log-in function to its portfolio of mobile apps.
The launch of Apple Pay comes after SB&G recently announced mobile accounted for 75% of total revenues for the 12 months ended 30 June 2016, up from 65% last year.
Group revenues increased 51% year-on-year to £376.3m, with its betting arm growing 64% to £214.1m and gaming up 36% to £159.5m.
In an additional update to its Sky Bet app last week, the operator also added a new My Bets page to enable customers to track all their bets in a single place.