Las Vegas-based Sightline Payments getting $100M boost from investors

Las Vegas-based Sightline Payments LLC, a financial technology company, is getting a $100 million investment boost that will enable it to expand as sports wagering continues to grow.

The company announced last week that Vegas Golden Knights owner William Foley’s Cannae Holdings is leading a team of investors that includes Resorts World Las Vegas operator Genting Group to back Sightline.

“These investments will further enable our efforts to empower the digital transformation of the consumer experience and to transform consumers’ funding options within the gaming industry,” Joe Pappano, CEO of Sightline Payments, said in a Thursday release announcing the investments.

“Building out organizational capabilities such as people, systems, technology, and marketing will further allow Sightline to capitalize on the growth of digital payments options across the gaming, sports betting, horse racing, and lottery markets,” Pappano said.

Sightline’s signature Play+ cashless system has more than 1.5 million enrolled accounts. That number is expected to grow as casinos and their customers seek more touch-free digital payment products during the coronavirus pandemic.

Sightline said that over the past 12 months, consumer interest in sports betting and online casino has grown rapidly in part because of the expansion of legalized mobile gaming opportunities in many states across the country. Payment companies have helped sports betting grow by nearly 70 percent and iGaming by nearly 200 percent in 2020. The combined online sports betting and online casino market is projected to grow from $3 billion in 2020 to $22 billion by 2026.

Casino gaming is a $90 billion revenue market in the United States that serves more than 100 million customers annually, Sightline said.

Foley, who chairs Cannae Holdings, invested $32 million in the venture, with Genting Group, Point Break Capital, Searchlight Capital Partners, Shift4 Ventures and Vectr Ventures contributing to Sightline, which is licensed as a cash access and wagering service provider with the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

“Sightline Payments’ seasoned leadership team has a proven track record and a vision to capitalize on many of the highest growth sectors in the entertainment industry, and I look forward to working side by side with them to achieve their goals,” Foley said in a release.

Cannae’s holdings include Dun & Bradstreet Holdings Inc. with about 76 million shares, an 18 percent investment, and Ceridian HCM Holding Inc., with about 14 million shares, a 9.5 percent investment.

Searchlight Capital Partners L.P., which first announced its investment in Sightline in December, is a global private investment firm with more than $8 billion in assets under management and offices in New York, London and Toronto.

“We are excited to be joined by a world-class group of investors with relevant and deep experience in FinTech, gaming, entertainment, and sports,” Christopher Cruz, managing director at Searchlight Capital Partners, said in a release.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.