Online gaming is becoming a larger part of London’s business story because the sector now depends on far more than casino operators. Payments, cybersecurity, software, advertising, legal advice and data all sit behind the services customers see.
Platforms such as Casumo Casino are one part of that chain. Around them is a network of game studios, payment companies, identity specialists, investors and advisers. That network was hard to miss at ExCeL London in July, when thousands of industry professionals arrived for one of the sector’s biggest trade gatherings. London can benefit from the infrastructure around this activity even when operators are based elsewhere.
What 15,000 visitors mean for London
The 2026 edition of iGB L!VE took place at ExCeL London on 1 and 2 July. Organisers reported more than 15,000 attendees and over 200 exhibitors and sponsors. The headline numbers matter, but the meetings matter more. An operator looking for a new payment provider might sit down with several firms in one day. A game studio can demonstrate a product to potential distribution partners. Early-stage companies can use Pitch iGB to put their software in front of investors and established businesses.
That concentration of buyers and sellers is valuable in a sector where suppliers are often spread across several countries. Contracts may involve regulated services, technical integrations and long-term support, so face-to-face conversations still carry weight. For a smaller supplier, one productive meeting can shorten months of remote sales work. London also gains from the surrounding activity. A gathering of this size can bring business to hotels, restaurants, transport providers and venues. More importantly, it gives London-based law firms, agencies, fintech companies and software developers direct access to international decision-makers without leaving the city.
The businesses behind the casino screen
A modern online casino rarely builds every part of its service in-house. The payments system may come from one supplier, identity checks from another and the game library from several studios or aggregators. Hosting, fraud detection, customer-support tools and marketing technology add more layers. That is where London’s fintech ecosystem becomes relevant. A cybersecurity firm does not need to be a casino company to protect accounts or monitor suspicious activity. A payments specialist can work across retail, finance and online gaming. A law firm with experience in digital services can advise businesses entering a regulated market.
The city already attracts large amounts of technology investment. London & Partners reported that London secured more than 1,700 technology foreign direct investment projects between 2014 and 2023, ahead of San Francisco and New York. That figure covers the wider technology economy, not gaming alone. Even so, it helps explain why suppliers choose London for meetings, hiring and expansion. The people and services they need are already clustered there. Recruitment also matters, as firms need engineers and security specialists who understand regulated digital products.
A £7.8bn market needs more than operators
Britain’s remote gambling market gives suppliers a reason to keep investing. UK Gambling Commission figures show that remote casino, betting and bingo generated £7.8 billion in gross gambling yield during the year to March 2025. Online casino games accounted for £5 billion. That money is not London revenue, and operators are based across Britain and overseas. The figures still show the scale of the systems needed to keep the market running.
A platform serving a large customer base needs dependable hosting, fast mobile performance and secure payments. Adding another game provider creates integration work. Introducing a new payment method means testing, monitoring and ongoing support. Security controls and fraud checks must also be updated as threats change. This is recurring work, not a one-off project completed at launch. Suppliers can build products for one operator, adapt them for another and then sell the same expertise into other regulated markets. As the market expands, dependable behind-the-scenes systems become more valuable.
The UK’s fintech sector adds depth to that pool of suppliers. Innovate Finance recorded $3.6 billion of investment across 534 UK fintech deals in 2025. Much of that investment sits outside gaming, but the skills involved in payments, identity and risk are directly relevant to the sector.
The deals matter more than the footfall
London will not benefit simply because more people gamble online. The value comes when an introduction at ExCeL becomes a software contract, an investment round or a long-term advisory relationship.
The city has plenty in its favour. Technology firms, investors, lawyers, media agencies and financial businesses are close enough to work together, while major events bring overseas operators and suppliers into the same network. High costs and competition from other European hubs remain real constraints, so reputation on its own is not enough. The clearest opportunity lies around the platforms rather than only within them. If London businesses keep winning work in payments, software, security, data and professional services, online gaming will continue to grow as part of the capital’s wider digital economy.
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