ZenSports, which offers a mobile sports betting app, on Monday said it has ambitious expansion plans following last week’s licensure in Nevada.
As reported by Gaming America, last Thursday ZenSports officially received its non-restricted gaming license from the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
Company officials said they will use the license to begin operating its sports betting platform at the Big Wheel Casino in Lovelock, Nevada, pending final technical certification, and then exercise its option with Strategic Gaming Management to take over the sportsbook at Baldini’s in Sparks, and operate ZenSports from that location.
ZenSports obtained an option for the Big Wheel Casino from Strategic Gaming Management in July 2020.
The company noted the Nevada Gaming Control Board found key employees Mark Thomas and Etan Mizrahi-Shalom, both co-founders of ZenSports, to be “suitable.” Earning this designation now allows Thomas and Mizrahi-Shalom to operate gaming facilities and products throughout the state of Nevada.
“This is an absolutely huge milestone for ZenSports and the state of Nevada,” Thomas said in a statement. “It is not easy to get licensed in Nevada, and Nevada is the gold standard for licensing throughout the world. ZenSports and its key employees, including myself, just went through the most rigorous set of investigations that exists out there. This puts us in a great position to be able to get licensed in other states throughout the US as we grow and expand. Italso is a huge win for the state of Nevada, because it is getting an innovative, hard-working company that is looking to grow and become an integral part of the Nevada gaming ecosystem for many years to come.”
At first, ZenSports only will offer its sportsbook and fiat funding options within Nevada. However, the company will seek approval for its peer-to-peer and cryptocurrency features in early 2022.
According to Thomas, “We wanted to get into the Nevada market as soon as possible and not wait for additional approvals of our peer-to-peer and cryptocurrency features.”
As part of ZenSports’ strategy to focus and expand within the US market, the company said it decided earlier this year to cease its international operations.
“As a fast-growing startup, it is important to have laser-focus,” Thomas said. “The US marketclearlyis the biggest opportunity for growth, and we want to ensure that we have the utmost focus on executing on that strategy. If and when we re-enter the international market in the future, we will focus on locations that have equally high opportunities.”
All future international business by ZenSports would need to first be approved by US regulators, Thomas added.
The ZenSports app is available for download in both the App Store (iOS) and the ZenSports website (Android and Mobile Web). The company is headquartered in West Hollywood, California.
