NIP Group Inc., a leading digital entertainment company, announced that it has entered a multi-year partnership with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) to drive gaming, media and entertainment growth in Abu Dhabi.

The five-year landmark agreement will see ADIO support NIP Group’s expansion in the region. Under the agreement, ADIO will support the Company with access to financial and non-financial growth opportunities valued at up to US$40 million over a four-year period. The NIP Group will establish its global headquarters in Abu Dhabi and will contribute to local employment in the esports and gaming sector. The Company will also increase its capacity across key business verticals in the region, including esports operations, creative studios and game publishing, alongside events and talent management.

Through the partnership, NIP Group will work directly with ADIO to advise on its gaming and esports strategy, leveraging Abu Dhabi’s location and resources to build a thriving local gaming ecosystem and deliver innovative digital entertainment solutions worldwide.

“We’re delighted to partner with ADIO as we bring together our Eastern and Western businesses, establishing a truly global headquarter that represents not only our growth as a company but the growth of gaming and entertainment in the Middle East. Our selection as a key partner is the ultimate testament to NIP Group’s industry legacy and leadership,” said Hicham Chahine, Co-CEO of NIP Group.

Mario Ho, Chairman and Co-CEO of NIP Group, said: “This partnership underscores our dedication to sustainable global expansion and operational excellence. This collaboration with ADIO not only reflects our growth ambitions but also our commitment to creating meaningful opportunities for local talent. By creating new jobs and amplifying Abu Dhabi’s leadership in esports and gaming, we aim to empower a new generation of professionals who will drive the gaming and entertainment sector forward in the Middle East and beyond.”

H.E. Badr Al-Olama, Director General of ADIO, said: “ADIO’s partnership with NIP Group reflects our shared ambition to lead in innovative industries of the future at the cutting edge of entertainment and technology. Welcoming NIP Group to Abu Dhabi represents an important addition to this endeavour, and we look forward to collaborating to ensure a dynamic future for Abu Dhabi’s esports and gaming industries.”

Through the partnership, NIP Group will have support from the broader Abu Dhabi ecosystem, which will help the Company expand its business in the Middle East and globally.

Within the ICE Barcelona 2025 framework, iGaming industry veteran BetConstruct has introduced The Last Battle Universe, a new B2B feature developed exclusively for partners that is set to change the ways businesses interact with partners.

The Last Battle Universe is a testament to how BetConstruct values its partnerships and remains committed to opening up new possibilities for mutual growth. The recent novel initiative allows partners to earn points after meeting specific pre-defined criteria. The points can include monthly turnover, active products and more.

The more of these points partners collect via The Last Battle Universe, the greater rewards they will unlock, with cashback on setup fees reaching up to 100%. Furthermore, The Last Battle Universe has zero setup fee for BetConstruct and Fastex partners, making it all the more inciting.

The Dutch Gaming Authority (KSA) has used collected (pseudo-anonymised) player data to map indicators of risky gambling behaviour. With the results of the research, the supervisor can compare the various license holders with each other in other areas than just extreme losses.

Gambling problems and excessive gambling are often associated with the loss of large sums of money. Gambling large amounts of money can indeed be an indicator of risky gambling behaviour, but other indicators also play an important role in detecting problem gamblers, such as playing time or changes in gambling behaviour (for example, gambling more often or at unusual times).

Licensed gambling providers have a mandatory data vault (CDB) in which pseudonymised player and transaction data is stored. The KSA has analysed this data to map risky gaming behaviour, to look at (the usefulness of) applied interventions by providers and to compare the different providers with each other.

The study looked at various indicators of problem gambling: intensity (gambling many days, or losing a lot of money), loss of control (number of deposits per day), increase in gambling behaviour (gambling more often or for longer, spending more money), chosen game (for example sports betting versus slot machines) and interventions by the provider. The analyses were conducted based on one year of data from the CDB.

By comparing or linking different indicators, the KSA gained many new and interesting insights. For example, playing at night is generally seen as an important indicator of risky gambling behaviour. The data shows that players play casino games more often than sports bets at night. This could mean that casino games are riskier than sports bets. At the same time, it could mean that placing sports bets at night is a stronger indicator of risky behaviour: it occurs less often and deviates more from the norm.

The KSA is now looking at how this research and the findings from it can be used by the supervisor to gain more insight into possible problem players and how to tackle them. In addition, it is looking at how the insights obtained can be used in other ways to improve supervision.