While traditional networking events remain sidelined for the foreseeable future, the need to gather and discuss industry developments remains stronger than ever. Stepping in to fill that void last week was the inaugural CasinoBeats Malta Digital event, with a host of industry experts from the payments sector uniting on Zoom to share informal discussions on the latest industry news.
Among some of the more obvious topics to be aired was the challenging practice of remote working while continuing to navigate through the ongoing pandemic. Panel members revealed that business hours have had to be adjusted as a result of home working, not least because of some taking on the role of part-time teacher.
SBC Media Journalist Ellie Lynch called on the panel to highlight some of the things that the payment industry has done right during the pandemic which prompted an enthusiastic response from W2’s Warren Russell.
Underlining the efficient way that relief programmes have been run, he said: “There’s been a lot of relief programmes run through payments vehicles and that’s not just a COVID thing; it’s very much been a theme of 2020. The payments industry has sort of stood up and said ‘we are here to help’. It started off with flood relief cards and even continued with things like PPE manufacturing. The payments industry can come out of this with a good reputation.”
Isabelle Delisle of Pinnacle followed up by underlining that the digitalisation of the industry is something that she believes will remain following the pandemic.
She emphasised that COVID has enhanced belief in digital transactions, specifically amongst older generations that previously would have been more reluctant to embrace it.
The engaging discussion, which flowed between topics at the heart of the industry to lockdown survival tips, provided a fitting end to what was a hugely successful and insightful three days of conference content.
