Soft2Bet promotes two executives

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The Backstory

Commercial reshuffle follows a North America push

Soft2Bet’s latest executive promotions sit within a broader commercial effort to turn product investment into regulated-market expansion. The company has been building its B2B profile around platform services, sportsbook and casino technology and its gamification layer, known as MEGA, while trying to deepen relationships with operators that face rising acquisition costs and tighter compliance demands.

The decision to elevate James Hancock to president of B2B marketing and Harry Heynes to business development director signals a more deliberate push to convert that product narrative into partnerships. Soft2Bet has framed both appointments as part of Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Cochrane’s expansion of the business development function, with a focus on high-yield opportunities in regulated markets. That language reflects where the supplier has been placing its emphasis: jurisdictions where licensing is difficult, operator needs are complex and differentiation increasingly depends on retention rather than simply adding more games.

That strategy was visible earlier this year when Cochrane described Soft2Bet as intent on expanding into the United States. The company is licensed in New Jersey and is active in Canada and Mexico, giving it a foothold in North America but not yet the scale of larger suppliers or operator-owned technology stacks. Cochrane’s argument was that Soft2Bet can compete by helping operators keep players engaged after the expensive acquisition phase.

Retention has become the core sales pitch

Soft2Bet’s commercial story has increasingly centered on the economics of player retention. In mature online gambling markets, operators often pay heavily for customers through media, affiliates, promotions and brand campaigns. That makes the lifetime value of each player critical. If customers churn quickly, the marketing model can become difficult to sustain, especially in states and provinces where tax rates, bonus restrictions or advertising scrutiny reduce margins.

MEGA is Soft2Bet’s answer to that problem. The product is designed as a gamification layer that can sit on top of an operator’s existing front end, using missions, rewards, free-to-play features, community mechanics and personalized prompts to encourage repeat engagement. Cochrane has positioned the product as a way to replicate some of the personalized hospitality found in land-based casinos, where hosts, incentives and familiarity can shape customer behavior.

That pitch is important to understanding Hancock’s new role. B2B marketing for a supplier such as Soft2Bet is not simply brand promotion. It requires explaining how a platform, regulatory roadmap and retention tool fit an operator’s business model. Hancock’s background at Paddy Power, the Stars Group and Gaming Innovation Group gives Soft2Bet a marketer with experience in brand launches, new-market entry and revenue growth. His task is to make the company’s technology legible to operators weighing build-versus-buy decisions, market-entry costs and the risk of adding outside systems to regulated operations.

Heynes’ appointment addresses the other side of the same equation. With experience at DraftKings, SIS and Inspired, he brings a network across sportsbook, fantasy, data, odds, payments and technology partnerships. His role will be to structure commercial agreements around operator priorities rather than sell technology as a generic product. That matters in regulated markets, where suppliers must account for local rules, compliance integrations, tax regimes and the customer segments each operator is pursuing.

Trade-show momentum put MEGA in front of buyers

The promotions also follow a year in which Soft2Bet has tried to raise the profile of MEGA with operators and investors. At the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas, the company showcased the product after it won Product Innovation of the Year at the 2025 Global Gaming Awards Americas. Soft2Bet used the event to demonstrate how the platform can support personalized player experiences, brand differentiation, loyalty and responsible play.

Its presence at G2E was more than a marketing exercise. Large gaming conventions are where suppliers test whether their product claims resonate with executives responsible for technology budgets and market launches. Soft2Bet’s MEGA showcase at the Global Gaming Expo included interactive sessions and a live workshop focused on performance and customer experience, underscoring that the company wants to be judged on measurable operator outcomes rather than novelty.

The company has pointed to North American momentum through brands including ToonieBet in Ontario. Canada, particularly Ontario, has become a proving ground for suppliers because it combines competitive private operators, established regulatory oversight and a large base of sports and casino customers. Success there can help suppliers make the case that their products can work in other North American jurisdictions, including U.S. states that allow online casino or sports betting.

That context helps explain why Soft2Bet is adding senior commercial capacity now. If MEGA is to move from award-winning product to widely adopted B2B tool, the company needs executives who can translate case studies into contracts. The promotions suggest Soft2Bet is seeking to professionalize that process as it pursues operators looking for retention tools without replacing entire technology stacks.

Canada and the World Cup sharpen the opportunity

Soft2Bet’s North American ambitions also intersect with a busy industry calendar in Canada. SBC Summit Canada 2026 is set to feature a new Leaders in Sports Betting and iGaming track, with speakers from Bet365, BetMGM, DraftKings, OLG and others. The agenda will examine Alberta’s expected market launch and the commercial impact of the 2026 World Cup, which will bring new and casual bettors into regulated channels.

Cochrane is scheduled to join a panel on how operators can capitalize on the World Cup-driven influx of bettors, according to SBC Summit Canada’s leaders track announcement. That discussion aligns closely with Soft2Bet’s positioning. Major sporting events can produce spikes in registration and betting volume, but the strategic question is whether operators can retain those customers after the event ends.

For suppliers, such moments create openings. Operators may seek tools that segment users, personalize offers and move one-time sports bettors toward longer-term engagement across casino, live dealer, free-to-play or loyalty products. But the opportunity also brings risk. Aggressive marketing around global sports events can attract regulatory scrutiny, particularly if promotions are unclear or if campaigns appear to target inexperienced bettors without adequate safeguards.

Soft2Bet’s messaging around retention and responsible play therefore has to serve two audiences at once: operators chasing revenue and regulators demanding consumer protection. Hancock and Heynes will be operating in that tension. Their success will depend on whether Soft2Bet can show that gamification improves engagement without encouraging irresponsible behavior or creating compliance headaches for licensed partners.

Regulated growth raises the compliance bar

The wider market is moving toward more formal standards for how online gaming companies communicate with customers. The Responsible Online Gaming Association recently released a voluntary Marketing and Advertising Code adopted by its members, setting benchmarks for legal-age protections, promotional clarity, influencer marketing and responsible gaming commitments. The standards bar marketing from appealing to minors, restrict placements to audiences expected to be at least 75% legal age and caution against terms such as “risk-free” that can misrepresent gambling as a financial strategy.

The code, detailed in ROGA’s marketing and advertising standards, also links compliance to a forthcoming certification program. The full code is available at responsibleonlinegaming.org. While ROGA is U.S.-focused and operator-led, its framework reflects a broader shift across regulated markets: growth is expected to come with demonstrable safeguards.

That trend is consequential for a supplier selling engagement technology. Gamification can be attractive to operators because it creates reasons for players to return, but the same mechanics must be designed and marketed carefully. Features that reward activity, trigger prompts or personalize experiences may need to account for self-exclusion, deposit limits, age-gating, advertising consent and indicators of risky play.

Soft2Bet has described MEGA as supporting responsible play as well as retention. The commercial challenge is to prove both claims in regulated environments where operators will demand evidence before adopting third-party technology. Hancock’s marketing function will need to make that case clearly, while Heynes’ business development role will likely involve aligning product capabilities with operator compliance teams as much as with revenue executives.

A broader supplier race for regulated markets

Soft2Bet is not alone in treating regulated expansion as the central growth path. Other suppliers are also moving into newly regulated or emerging jurisdictions, where early entry can create lasting relationships but local conditions can upend assumptions. Light & Wonder’s experience in the Philippines and Brazil illustrates the point. In an interview with Inside Asian Gaming, Magdalena Podhorska-Okolow described how the supplier had to adapt after learning that online customers in the Philippines did not always overlap with land-based casino players.

That lesson from Light & Wonder’s new-markets strategy is relevant to Soft2Bet. Regulated markets are not interchangeable. A retention model that works in Ontario may need adjustment in New Jersey, Mexico or a future Alberta market. Local sports calendars, payment habits, casino familiarity, tax rules and advertising norms all shape what operators need from suppliers.

The stakes for Soft2Bet are therefore larger than two personnel moves. The promotions indicate that the company believes its technology is ready for a wider B2B push and that it needs senior executives capable of turning product momentum into market share. If Hancock can sharpen the company’s message and Heynes can convert operator interest into durable agreements, Soft2Bet could strengthen its position in the crowded platform and engagement sector. If not, MEGA risks remaining a differentiated feature in a market where distribution, compliance and relationships often determine winners.