GMB - With what expectations does 2021 begin, after a year to forget?
Leonardo Baptista - We have the best possible expectations for this year, because, despite the economic downturn and all the other difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Pay4Fun followed the opposite path with many investments and news. For 2021, we are attentive to market demand and we want to launch products that somehow alleviate our client's “pain” (both the final customer and the sites that already use our services). We also intend to expand operations to other countries in Latin America and further expand our range of operators in Brazil.
Is Pay4Fun better prepared than before to deal with outbreaks or the continuation of the pandemic? Will there be a change in strategy?
Yes, we need to adapt to meet the new demands of the market, make some deadlines more flexible, create promotions and change some focuses. We have won in some sectors and lost in others, but in general, Pay4Fun has been running smoothly throughout this while still offering the best customer experiences. In addition, during the pandemic, we adopted the Home Office regime because our entire infrastructure was prepared to offer our employees the necessary conditions for them to work safely. When flexibilization occurred, we brought back to our headquarters only a few key employees who did not depend on public transport and who live close to the company. For the future, if there is a need to change strategies, we will, therefore, aim to be where the end customer needs our services in a simple and uncomplicated way.
What projects / ideas is Pay4Fun working on to launch this year?
We have recently launched Pay4Fun Card services, Pay4Fun Store, our social responsibility program called Pay4Fun Smile, our affiliation platform and now Pay4Fun GO, which is a payment gateway that makes the end user experience much faster and our Merchant, a much more fluid product for its operation. Therefore, in 2021, we will work on expanding both in Brazil and in Latin American markets the services we offer. The idea is to expand to a more comprehensive portfolio and bring a viable alternative for people who are out of the banking system and who do not have credit in the market. In addition, we always seek to innovate and improve the services already offered, as this is a job that never stops.
Do you believe that the penetration of online gambling will increase while the land-based will maintain its limitations on public entry?
I believe that yes, people will continue to look for ways of entertainment without crowds as we were used to in the past. Even with the gradual return of the physical audience, many people will still prefer to stay at home. During this period of restrictions, it was possible to see that it is plausible to have fun and make money safely on the network. I am optimistic and I believe that we will have a major change in the gaming industry in the years to come, in the post-COVID era.
Do you think that this year in Brazil there will be a definite takeoff towards a regulated gambling market? Will Pay4Fun’s presence / investment grow in the country throughout 2021?
I believe that yes, lately, we have taken important steps towards this takeoff and everything indicates that we will move (in the coming years) from an official “nothing” to a regulated “everything”. And yes, we intend to expand our operations. The growth in 2020 was in the order of an incredible 320% compared to 2019 and we want our growth to be even bigger this year, so we aim to expand the staff by creating new positions and departments within Pay4Fun, in addition to reaching more customers nationwide with investments in expansion and our services.
Source: Exclusive GMB
