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Gaming site Haste Arcade raises $1.5M in oversubscribed fundraising round
Haste Arcade has just closed its $1.5 million seed round. The fundraising was oversubscribed, Haste was able to exceed the $1 million target that it had set for itself.
“We were originally seeking $1MM to lay a good solid foundation for the product/vision and then have some working capital to start testing our assumptions around product/market fit, specifically with marketing outside the ‘crypto’ community,” said Dan Wagner, the co-founder of Haste Arcade.
“After pitching the concept to a handful of investors, it became obvious that we weren’t the only ones thinking ILP™ Gaming could potentially become a ‘thing.’ We stopped pitching a couple of months ago but due to word of mouth and interest from other investors we were able to secure an additional $500K on top of the original goal bringing the total to $1.5MM,” he added.
The gaming industry
According to Wagner, there are several elements of the Haste Arcade that make investors confident in Haste’s future.
“First and foremost, the idea; its novel, it’s new, and it’s easy to understand. Get on the leaderboard. Get paid. It’s not rocket science by any means and at the same rate, it’s not hard to imagine something like ILP™ Gaming catching on and taking off.
“Secondly, the market. Online gaming is absolutely massive and even if you’re only able to capture a small fraction of the gamers in the world, you can build a business with millions or hundreds of millions of users.
“And finally, our team. It’s not our first rodeo, meaning, we’ve raised capital before and we’ve shown what it takes to build a business. Many don’t know this, but the four co-founders of Haste, Inc. have been working together for basically seven years at this point. We move fast, are great at failing, iterating, pivoting, and quite frankly just getting stuff done and keeping the ball rolling.
“Add in the rest of the folks we’ve brought on and our core team of 8 forms a solid foundation. When you realize the core team’s skill set and experience, you realize that in a lot of ways, it’s not your average startup. Since we started building beta, everything has been done first class. If we are right, Haste Arcade has uncovered an entirely new category in gaming, and there is most likely some money to be made from being the market leader for something like that,” said Wagner.
The lead investor in the round was Jonathan Cogley, the CEO of Logic Boost Labs. Cogley has a long and successful history in the cybersecurity field and recently sold his cybersecurity company Thycotic for $1.4 billion. Now, he spends his time at Logic Boost Labs, a San Diego-based accelerator that invests in early-stage leaders.
Other notable investors that participated in the seed round include Thomas Vu, who formerly worked at Riot Games helping bring League of Legends to market; Anthony Borquez, the CEO of Grab Games and a professor at the University of Southern California; Craig Brennan, the Silicon Valley veteran with decades of experience in software leadership/management that sits as the CEO of private and public companies; and Brad Powers the CIO of Passport.
Seeing new investors throw their hats in the ring is a positive sign. Investors provide companies with the resources they need to succeed because they see value in the company’s business model and have the belief that their business will be worth significantly more in the future. Businesses like Haste that find a way to implement innovative ideas that have the potential to revolutionize an industry will always be sought after by investors.
The fact that the latest haste fundraising round was oversubscribed confirms that theory and supports the idea that there is a tremendous amount of value that can be realized by the businesses using the Bitcoin blockchain as a core component of the app, service, or experience that they are creating.
The Haste Arcade future
“We are highly focused on a couple of things at the moment like capturing and analyzing data from our marketing efforts and sharpening the unit economics so that we have a compelling story when we start raising growth capital. We are also highly focused on creating new and more engaging experiences throughout the arcade. We’re very excited about certain items on our roadmap and believe the online gaming community will be too,” said Wagner.
Ultimately, the money Haste Arcade has raised will bring them closer to having their overall vision come to fruition.
“In the future, you will come to Haste Arcade for awesome experiences. You will play games, compete, and have fun, but you will also drop in just to hang out, be social, and communicate with the friends that you’ve made from all around the world. You will enjoy immersive experiences in the metaverse. You will make some money and some will even quit their jobs and become professional gamers in the arcade,” Wagner said.
“You will see Haste Arcade on national television. You will see Haste Arcade promoted by the biggest celebrities and pro athletes in the world. You will buy a Haste console. You will play ILP™ games at your local bar. You will even walk into a physical arcade and play skeeball or shoot hoops for ILP™. If you are involved now, you will be proud to have been a part of it all in its early stages,” he added.
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Refie, the new living interface inside ReferOn, it’s here.
ReferOn, the next-generation affiliate management platform, has launched Refie — a built-in interface layer that gives the platform its own awareness, making interaction faster, clearer, and more human.
Refie represents a new level of interaction within ReferOn, designed to make complex affiliate data easier to perceive and act on through visual feedback that turns system logic into something instantly understandable. He now lives inside the platform’s interface, appearing on onboarding screens and system state pages, where he reflects how the system feels and responds in real time.
Refie isn’t a chatbot or a mascot — he’s an integrated UX layer that connects technical precision with human intuition. By reducing noise and guiding attention naturally, he helps affiliate managers work faster while avoiding mistakes and staying aligned with live performance data.
We like to call this approach “lazy intelligence” — systems that think before you do so you can focus on what actually matters. Refie is the first visible step toward that.
Roadmap: From Awareness to Assistance
Refie’s introduction marks the beginning of ReferOn’s next development stage.
He’s the foundation for what comes next: gamification, engagement, and, ultimately, intelligent assistance. Through him, we’ll introduce a more interactive, rewarding experience where every action feels meaningful. Over time, Refie will evolve from a visual signal into a personal AI agent — the intelligent core of the ReferOn platform.
Vlad Bondarenko, ReferOn’s Head of Product, commented, “Refie isn’t just an add-on or feature — it’s a reflection of how our platform and team think. For years, affiliate platforms have been built for reporting, not for people. We wanted to change that. Refie was born to simplify. He embodies how we think about technology: clarity, control, and connection should feel natural, not forced.
With Refie, ReferOn has learned how to say hi — not with words, but quietly, through awareness. It’s how the system shows it understands what’s happening. He represents the moment ReferOn moved beyond functionality and toward awareness, emotion, and intelligence. The launch goal is to show that the era of faceless B2B tools is ending.”
The ReferOn team will showcase the platform’s latest innovations at SiGMA Central Europe in Rome (Booth 5044). There, attendees can explore the system in action, connect with the team, and experience Refie — the living interface making its first public debut.
The post When Logic Finds a Face: Meet Refie, ReferOn’s New Living Interface appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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Hölle Games, the German-based video slots studio celebrated for its distinct “Made in Germany” craftsmanship, has expanded its footprint in the German online gaming market through a new partnership with Betano.de, one of the country’s most dynamic and fast-growing iGaming platforms.
This collaboration marks a significant milestone in Hölle Games’ ongoing growth within Germany. Having already established a strong presence in the regulated market, the addition of Betano as a distribution partner ensures that even more players will have access to Hölle Games’ portfolio of visually striking, character-driven slot titles.
Through Betano.de, German players can now enjoy a broad selection of Hölle Games’ top-performing titles, which blend classic slot inspiration with contemporary visuals and smooth, intuitive gameplay. Designed and developed in Germany, Hölle Games’ content is known for its attention to detail, local market resonance, and commitment to player entertainment.
Robert Lenzhofer, CEO of Hölle Games, commented: “We’re incredibly proud to see our games featured on Betano.de, one of the most recognized brands in Europe. This partnership is another step in strengthening our local presence and making our uniquely German-crafted slots more accessible to players nationwide. At Hölle Games, we take great pride in combining creativity with compliance — building experiences that resonate with players while meeting the highest regulatory standards.”
Clemens Kaiser, Head of Commercial, Kaizen Gaming commented: “We’re thrilled to expand our casino offering with Hölle Games’ portfolio. Their content is a perfect match for the Betano brand — high quality, engaging, and locally relevant. We’re confident our players will enjoy what Hölle Games brings to the table.”
The partnership underlines Hölle Games’ commitment to strengthening its relationships with key regulated operators in Europe and reinforces Betano’s reputation for delivering diverse, premium gaming content tailored to local preferences. Together, the two brands continue to raise the bar for online casino entertainment in Germany.
The post Hölle Games Strengthens German Presence Through Partnership with Betano.de appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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To mark the launch of the 100th brand in 2025, SOFTSWISS, an international technology provider with over 15 years in the iGaming sector, will host a unique live show at SiGMA Central Europe 2025: the pit-stop-style assembly of a sports car, which will be gifted to the client behind the milestone brand on the final event day. This will be the first time a real vehicle is assembled live on the floor of an iGaming expo.
Over the three days of the event, a professional crew will assemble an Alfa Romeo 4C Launch Edition in real time, transforming SOFTSWISS Stand 4015 into a high-performance pit lane. This full-scale build sets a new bar for experiential engagement in the iGaming industry, giving attendees the opportunity to take part in assembling a sports car themselves.
During the show, professional mechanics will demonstrate how racing technology mirrors the architecture behind SOFTSWISS solutions: real-time analytics, scalable platforms, and automation. This three-day showcase will conclude with a symbolic moment – the gifting of the completed vehicle to the SOFTSWISS partner who launched the 100th brand on the company’s software in 2025. The ceremony starts on 6th November at 13:00 at Stand 4015.
“We believe every milestone is a shared success. Launching 100 new brands this year within the SOFTSWISS ecosystem shows the trust our partners place in us, and we’re proud to celebrate this moment together. This car represents precision, collaboration, and speed, the very values that define both racing and iGaming,” said Olga Resiga, Chief Business Development Officer at SOFTSWISS. “But more than that, this live build is a statement: we don’t just talk about innovation, we put it on display – in motion, in real time, and in front of the entire industry.”
Another major moment of the show will be the unveiling of the 2026 iGaming Trends Report – one of the industry’s most anticipated releases. Created in collaboration with NEXT.io, the report will offer a comprehensive outlook on the technology, regulatory shifts, and market dynamics shaping the industry.
The launch will take place on 5 November from 12:00 to 16:00 CET during the 2026 iGaming Trends Marathon by SOFTSWISS at Stage 2: People, Partners & Performance. The four-hour programme will bring together global experts for keynote sessions and panel discussions covering key challenges and opportunities for the year ahead – from regulatory evolution and player engagement to platform scalability and AI-powered operations. Pre-registration for early access to the full report is now open.
About SOFTSWISS
SOFTSWISS is an international technology company with over 15 years of experience in developing innovative solutions for the iGaming industry. SOFTSWISS provides comprehensive software for managing iGaming projects. The company’s product portfolio includes the Casino Platform, the Game Aggregator with over 35,000 casino games, Affilka Affiliate Platform, the Sportsbook Software and the Jackpot Aggregator. The expert team, based in Malta, Poland, and Georgia, counts over 2,000 employees.
The post SOFTSWISS to Gift a Live-Built Sports Car To Celebrate 100 Launched Brands in 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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