Modularity is no longer a technical preference in iGaming. According to Arturs Zagurilo, CEO of GammaPlus, it is a strategic decision that determines scalability, how fast an operator can adapt, expand and remain competitive.
In the second part of SiGMA News’ conversation with Zagurilo, the focus shifts from launch economics to infrastructure. Part I examined why many operators fail within their first 18 months, while Part II explores what determines whether a business can scale beyond that stage.
Speaking about the next phase of the iGaming industry’s evolution, Zagurilo said operators are beginning to recognise that platform architecture, compliance design and data control are not back-office considerations, but commercial levers. “In today’s environment, modularity isn’t a technical preference. It’s a business strategy that enables speed, control and sustainable growth,” he said.
Control over code
As regulatory frameworks tighten across Europe and beyond, operators dependent on rigid turnkey systems often struggle to react quickly to change. Zagurilo believes the iGaming industry is entering a period where platform ownership is directly linked to competitiveness.
“When operators don’t own their platform, they’re dependent on vendors for product changes, compliance updates, integrations and even how fast they can react to the market,” he said. “That lack of control slows decision-making and limits differentiation.”
However, he rejects the notion that ownership means building every component internally. “Ownership isn’t about writing every line of code. It’s about controlling the layers that matter most. These layers are player data, CRM (Customer Relationship Management) logic, payments, UX (User Experience) and the ability to adapt quickly.”
According to Zagurilo, operators adopting hybrid models, retaining control of core systems while partnering strategically for other components, are better positioned to protect margins and scale without being locked into external roadmaps.
Compliance as a growth mechanism
While Part I addressed regulation as an operational reality, Zagurilo expands further on how technology can transform compliance from a constraint into an enabler. “Compliance only becomes a bottleneck when it’s added on top of the platform instead of built into it,” he said.
He said embedding Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti-Money Laundering (AML) controls, responsible gaming tools and reporting systems at the infrastructure level makes expansion more straightforward. “Launching in new markets becomes a configuration exercise, not a redevelopment project.”
Automation is central to this shift. “The right platform automates compliance workflows, reduces manual intervention and minimises human error,” Zagurilo explained. “That lowers operational costs and shortens approval timelines with regulators and payment providers.”
He added that trust derived from strong compliance processes extends beyond regulators in iGaming. “Players withdraw faster, payment gateway providers cooperate more easily, and regulators see a mature operation. That trust directly impacts conversion, retention and expansion opportunities.” Rigid systems, he warned, often require custom development for each rule change in rapidly evolving regulatory environments that can quietly cap growth.
Real-time data, a competitive advantage
Beyond architecture and compliance, Zagurilo identified real-time data access as one of the most underutilised competitive advantages in the sector. “Real-time data is no longer ‘nice to have’. It’s fundamental,” he said.
Operators relying on delayed reporting structures are constantly reacting after margins have already been eroded. “When you’re working with delayed or static reports, you’re always reacting too late.”
Real-time visibility allows operators to detect churn signals, bonus abuse patterns, payment friction and campaign inefficiencies as they occur. “That speed directly impacts margins,” he added. However, the issue is not data volume. “What’s still underutilised is actionable data, not raw data. Many platforms collect huge volumes of information but don’t turn it into operational triggers.”
He also highlighted another weakness is siloed reporting. “Marketing, CRM, payments and compliance often operate in silos, looking at different dashboards. The operators who perform best have unified, real-time views that connect player behaviour to revenue and risk.”
Scaling breaks processes before technology
Zagurilo also addressed a common misconception around scaling challenges. Contrary to popular belief, performance infrastructure is rarely the first element to fail. “In most cases, internal processes break first. Not the technology itself,” he said.
As traffic grows, manual approvals, fragmented payment workflows and disconnected compliance procedures become strain points. “Manual approvals, fragmented integrations and disconnected teams don’t scale, and that’s when delays, errors and player frustration start to appear.”
Integrations are typically the second area of stress. As operators add more payment providers and regional tools, poorly structured integrations become increasingly fragile.
Pure performance failures, he suggested, tend to emerge later, by which time process inefficiencies have already constrained expansion. To support global scale, platforms must be “modular, API-first and automation-driven from day one”, with compliance, payments and CRM configurable rather than hard-coded.
Multi-market expansion requires structural discipline
As operators pursue multi-jurisdiction strategies, Zagurilo sees a recurring blind spot: underestimating variation between markets. “Most operators underestimate how much complexity sits between markets,” he said.
Beyond licensing frameworks, there are differences in reporting formats, support standards, payment behaviour, and KYC demands. He also believes applying uniform CRM strategies or bonus logic across markets often results in declining engagement.
“The operators who scale well standardise the core and localise the edges,” he explained. Core architecture and data logic should remain consistent, while payments, compliance rules and UX should be adaptable through configuration. Over-standardisation, he warned, frequently leads to regulatory friction and weaker performance.
A more specialised platform ecosystem ahead
Looking ahead three to five years, Zagurilo expects greater specialisation across the iGaming platform landscape. “We’ll likely see a lot more specialisation,” he said. As compliance costs rise and margins tighten, some providers may consolidate, while others focus on niche strengths such as regional payments or compliance-heavy jurisdictions. “The future isn’t one dominant platform. It’s fewer broad players, more specialised expertise and much tighter integration across the ecosystem.”
For operators entering the market, the structural implications are significant. Infrastructure and partner decisions taken at launch can compound over time. “You can fix marketing, adjust bonuses, even change markets,” Zagurilo concluded. “But if your technology and partnerships are wrong, everything else becomes harder and more expensive.” According to him, in a sector where launch barriers are low but scalability barriers are rising, architecture is increasingly destiny.
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