Kambi is looking to turn the scale of its sportsbook network into a competitive advantage for its operator partners, with data from billions of bets informing pricing, risk management and product development.
Following the launch of its updated brand and new tagline, “Powerful Network. Proven Edge.”, Kambi’s Chief Product Officer Erik Lödgberg says its network of more than 70 partners provides a depth of betting intelligence that can strengthen the sportsbook experience across the entire ecosystem.
Lödgberg told SBC News that every bet placed across its network contributes valuable information that can be used to sharpen pricing and risk management. That data allows Kambi to improve margins while also giving its partners greater flexibility in the sportsbook product, including the ability to offer a wider range of combinations and betting options while maintaining profitability.
The value of the network also extends beyond trading, with player behaviour providing insight into what customers want and where the next opportunities for sportsbook product development may lie.
A network that gets stronger with every partner
Kambi’s network effect is based on the idea that every new partner contributes additional data, which can then improve the sportsbook experience for the wider network.
“When a new partner joins, they come with their player base, market conditions and betting patterns,” Lödgberg explained. “That data joins our pool and sharpens across the chain, the pricing, risk and product.”
The result is a feedback loop in which new information can benefit both the latest partner and those that have already joined the network.
According to Kambi’s CPO, that accumulated intelligence is difficult for competitors to replicate, with the company pointing to 15 years of data and continuous improvements to its models. The network represents more than scale in terms of the number of operators connected to the platform. Its value comes from the depth and breadth of the betting information generated across different markets and player bases.
Regulation can accelerate market expansion
The network advantage is also supported by Kambi’s experience operating across highly regulated markets. With licences in more than 100 jurisdictions, the company says it has encountered a broad range of regulatory requirements and developed relationships with regulators over many years.
“The complexity of regulation is one of the biggest barriers for growth or innovation to some extent,” Lödgberg said, noting that operators can underestimate the challenge of entering new markets.
For partners looking to expand, that experience can reduce some of the complexity involved in launching in a new jurisdiction.
“When a partner wants to move into a new market, it is very likely we have already solved that compliance challenge,” Lödgberg explained. That can reduce time to market and regulatory risk, allowing operators to shift their attention more quickly towards commercial growth rather than solving compliance requirements from scratch.
World Cup showcases the network at scale
The scale of Kambi’s network becomes particularly relevant during major sporting events, when betting volumes and player expectations rise simultaneously.
The company pointed to the World Cup as an example of its AI trading system managing the entire lifecycle of bets across all matches, while maintaining both the player experience and margins for its partners. The result was an 18% trading margin for partners during the tournament, alongside changes in product behaviour.
One example was BetBuilders, which accounted for 25% of total live betting GGR during the World Cup. Lödgberg said this represented a step change in the experience it was able to deliver, particularly given the established popularity of BetBuilders in pre-match betting.
For Kambi, the performance demonstrates how the different elements of its network come together when demand reaches its highest levels. The combination of betting data, AI trading and product intelligence allows the sportsbook to respond to large volumes of concurrent demand while continuing to develop the experience offered to players.
Ultimately, Kambi’s CPO sees that as the practical meaning behind its “Powerful Network. Proven Edge.” positioning: a sportsbook ecosystem in which every partner and player interaction adds to the intelligence available across the network, strengthening the products and trading decisions that follow.