Have you ever wondered what is a game aggregator and benefits it can bring to operators, game studios, and players? We had the pleasure to video interview Alex Tomic, the Founder of Alea Play. The video is also available on YouTube.
Alex Tomic, Founder and founder of Alea Play, shared the evolution of his company. Originally launched in 2012 as an online operator, Alea transitioned to a B2B game aggregator model in 2018. Today, it holds licenses from MGA, UKGC, and SGA, and is the leading aggregator in LATAM and Brazil.
In addition to aggregation, Alea has developed Alea Pay to deliver payment and banking solutions to clients. The company now connects operators to over 15,000 games from 150+ providers through one contract and one integration.
Alea acts as a single access point to hundreds of game studios, simplifying integrations for operators. Rather than signing dozens or hundreds of deals and doing Know Your Business checks for each provider, operators connect to Alea’s unified API. According to Alex, this results in faster onboarding, fewer legal headaches, and typically better pricing thanks to Alea’s volumes.
“You just pass through us and you have one integration, one contract, and usually better prices.”
Alea adds further value by offering features like jackpots, RTP and tag data via API, and ready-to-use assets like game thumbnails and images.
Though players never see an aggregator, they directly benefit from its backend efficiency. Alea ensures that every game API integrated into its platform adheres to robust standards. This wasn’t always the case—Alex recalls a time when many new game providers had unreliable APIs that lacked basic security.
“Some providers didn’t have credentials—you could just log in and generate bets.”
To combat this, Alea now asks providers to integrate Alea’s API instead. The result is a safer, more standardized chain of communication, from player to operator to provider.
Penetration tests by Continent 8 and other audits have helped Alea establish secure connections. This ensures that operators avoid exposing their platforms to security risks stemming from poorly built third-party APIs.
Alex acknowledged a key concern in aggregation: single-point dependency. If an aggregator goes down, the entire casino could go offline. However, Alea is fully hosted on Amazon AWS with redundancies in place.
“We have 99.9% uptime. If we’re down, it’s because Amazon is down.”
New operators negotiating directly with top studios like Evolution or Pragmatic receive standard pricing. Alea’s massive scale—processing 80 to 100 million EUR in GGR monthly—enables it to secure better terms and pass on savings.
Alex broke down a typical example: a provider might offer its game for 10% to the public, 6–7% to Alea, which then adds 1–2% on top—still cheaper than the direct deal.
“Even middle-sized operators doing 5 to 10 million per month can’t match the pricing we get.”
Alex described iGaming as an industry with energy and risk-takers. What began as an easy money space has matured into a complex, innovation-driven environment.
“We may not be the smartest in the room, but there is energy in this industry—it glows.”
It’s the maverick culture and constant evolution that keep him invested.
Personally, Alex enjoys titles by No Limit City and Push Gaming, but he still plays classics like Book of Ra when visiting land-based casinos. He also mentioned Wicked Games, a new provider backed by Ikigai Ventures with edgy and humorous titles like “Big Black Cock” and a satirical “Transformers” slot.
“They’re bringing back that rebellious spirit No Limit City had when they started.”
Game success can be hard to predict. Alex recalled dismissing Bonanza for its banjo music and basic design—only to watch it become a massive hit.
He also praised Aviator for breaking through in the crash game category. Elements like leaderboards, chat, and founder charisma made the difference.
For Alex, three elements are key:
“If you go to 4–5% house edge, you get greedy and players will see it.”
While the final responsibility lies with operators, aggregators like Alea can monitor transactions and alert on suspicious behavior. However, Alex emphasized that game developers face a delicate balance: building engaging—not addictive—experiences.
The competition isn’t just other gambling providers—it’s any platform fighting for player attention, from Fortnite to ChatGPT.
“We’re not just competing with other casinos. We’re competing with time itself.”
Alea has made a conscious choice to avoid holding player data. Instead, they store only game-related information to reduce regulatory risk.
The real focus is on protecting this data pipeline. Alea’s reverse API model gives it full control over the communication chain, minimizing exposure to malicious actors.
“Hackers today look like players. Our job is to make sure the API is as secure as a bank’s.”
Alex Tomic’s interview offers deep insights into how game aggregation works and why it’s more than just a content pipeline. From pricing and security to innovation and passion, Alea Play is shaping the future of iGaming infrastructure from the inside out.