Bethereum is making use of the blockchain’s transparency and peer-to-peer transaction advantages to build a platform that enables users to place bets on sports events without the need to use bookies or pay agency fees.

The platform allows users to customize their bets and invite friends to participate in these user-designed gambles. They can decide on which matches they are betting on, how much money will the minimum bet be and how the earnings will be distributed once the results are known. With this approach, the Bethereum team is targeting not-only traditional players, but also a growing community of casual sports gamblers, which bet socially with friends or co-workers.

These sports fans seem to have different behavior patterns than traditional gamblers as they seem more passionate about the team they support than necessarily the earnings.

We recently sat down with Peter Gal, the Co-Founder of Bethereum to have a chat with him about the project as well as finding out his thoughts and insights.

Hi, Peter. Thanks for joining us today. Can you tell us more about yourself and Bethereum?

I was leading strategic initiatives in Telco, IT, and banking. Responsible for some of the successful product launches in the CEE region, I am experienced in big data, cloud computing, IoT, and e-commerce. My passion for technology and business strategy already drew international attention, when my team ranked as a finalist in the 2016 MWC mobile innovation award.

Bethereum is a social betting platform, allowing people to place bets on events with other players without going through a “middle man” (e.g., a bookie or betting provider). It operates as a fully decentralized, secure solution built on Ethereum-based Smart Contracts. All bets are carried out using BETHER, our purposefully designed ERC20 betting token.

Bethereum is safe, transparent, provably fair, and simple to use. It’s this easy: you create a bet on one or more events, designating the minimum amount and how winnings will be split. Other players will join in the bet (with their own event predictions). After the event ends, Smart Contracts automatically calculate the winnings and award them Bether tokens based on the agreed split (e.g., winner takes all).

Think of Bethereum as watching a football game with your friends and saying “I’ll bet you £5 Chelsea wins tonight” and your friend from Manchester taking the bet. Whether you win or lose, the money stays between the two of you.

First off, why did you decide to use the blockchain in building Bethereum? What was your thought process behind it?

In Bethereum all bets have a winner, the money stays with players, and we will always welcome winners

Even in its fairest implementation, traditional betting remains a highly centralized endeavor, taking power away from the players and placing it in the hands of bookmakers and betting agencies. Simply stated, in the long run, individuals inevitably lose all their funds against “the House”.

We want to bring the fun back into betting, building an innovative, decentralized, transparent platform combining modern technology with a superior social experience. By doing so, we believe we will reach segments with untapped market potentials, such as casual bettors who are overwhelmed by the complexity or inherent trust issues of conventional betting solutions.

Cryptocurrencies are on the rise and show no signs of slowing down. The utilization of blockchain technologies is at an all-time high and scheduled to expand even further.

With all this in mind, we created Bethereum, a brand new blockchain-based platform designed to address the shortcomings of traditional betting. Starting with sports betting, players will bet against each other on match results (individually or as part of a group of friends) instead of playing against odds designated by bookmakers. Whatever the outcome of the bet, the money stays within these groups instead of going into a bookie’s pocket.

Within Bethereum, transactions are secured by cryptography and governed by Smart Contracts on the Ethereum blockchain. All financial movements are recorded on the blockchain and remain transparent and viewable for each included party.

Tell us about how you came up with the idea of Bethereum.

The market potential for a superior social betting platform is absolutely massive. Recent estimates place the global gambling and betting market at a value of up to 3 trillion USD (both regulated and unregulated). Licensed gambling proceeds exceed half a billion USD.

As broadband and smartphone penetration keep rising, the market is inexorably shifting from traditional to online channels. The online betting market is already worth nearly 50 billion USD, with mobile-based platforms experiencing explosive growth of over 40% per year. Just in the European Union, the average mobile gambling spend per adult went from 1 USD in 2010 to over 15 USD in 2017.

With an estimated 65% share of the total spend, football betting dominates the industry. For this reason, Bethereum will initially focus on this segment of sports betting, allowing us to scale our business and reach an operating profit as rapidly as possible. However, the platform will shortly after integrating additional sport and non-sport betting content (e.g., hockey/basketball, e-sports, fantasy, social events, and possibly casino gaming).

Thanks to our focus on simplicity and security, we believe we will appeal to non-gamblers as well: the mass of casual bettors who has not yet dared to place an official bet, intimidated by the complexity and lack of transparency of conventional betting platforms.

Did you face a problem within the industry or do you think there is a gap in the market for Bethereum to fill?

The online betting industry is afflicted by a number of serious problems. Among other considerations, odds are vastly in favour of the bookmaker, payouts are not always honoured, and regular winners are restricted or banned. There is a lack of transparency and security, high fees and low returns, and low social involvement. These factors alienate a significant number of potential bettors from taking part in such systems.

What do you think is the biggest problem Bethereum will solve and why is the problem important to solve?

There are many of them.

Unfair Conditions

Over time, the House always wins. Odds are massively in favor of bookmakers. Players who regularly beat such odds are banned. When a bet has no winners, the bookie “takes it all.” And bets, where the bookmaker stands to make a large loss, are sometimes canceled.

In Bethereum all bets have a winner, the money stays with players, and we will always welcome winners.

Lack of Transparency

Betting companies operate under a shade of secrecy, not letting customers know how odds are created or how much money is poured in. Some even manipulate odds after a game starts. In Bethereum, players set the odds and all transactions are visible on the Blockchain.

Betting limits and low returns

Due to payout-matching liability, operators limit players on how much they can bet. Faced with low limits and unattractive odds, bettors often seek higher returns in underground betting. We place no limits on odds and returns and plan a High-Roller club for truly massive bets.

Lack of social and gaming character

Bets have a strong social root, but online betting is truly impersonal. People bet against faceless bookmakers instead of playing with friends and colleagues. It just doesn’t feel like a game anymore. Bethereum is a social, community-driven platform including powerful gamification elements.

Inherent complexity

Successful bettors need to master a wealth of information: odds, spreads, handicaps, vigorish, moneyline… the list is nearly as vast as the betting choices. Complex registration and interfaces compound the problem. This can be overwhelming to casual players. Bethereum is designed for maximum simplicity and intuitiveness.

Security Concerns

Casual bettors are more interested in security than regular gamblers. The centralized nature of betting providers makes them vulnerable to external and internal attacks, putting players’ funds and financial information at risk. Bethereum’s decentralized setup and Smart Contracts offer unmatched player protection.

Outdated payment methods and slow payouts

No more credit cards, wire transfers, deposits, and other outdated payment systems. No more delays in receiving payouts. The Bether token will enable near-instant bet participation and winning distribution.

High fees

Most betting operators charge fees for everything – even for depositing money. Or hide fees within each transaction (e.g., adding a premium on exchange rates). Bethereum will only take a small fee from a player’s winnings (and partially reinvest in the network). Players will only pay a small fee from winnings.

Editors Pick: Bethereum ICO

In your business proposal, you suggest many people have been, so far, excluded from online gambling due to restrictive local legislation. How do you think regulators will react to a platform like Bethereum that will democratize access to gambling worldwide?

Our platform will serve only as a system that allows two people to meet together and to bet with their friends. Players will create their own bets and will invite their friends, or any other participants on the Bethereum platform to challenge this bet.

Bethereum serves only as a meeting point for the people that want to make a bet together. These “friendly” bets consist of private contracts between two or more people. This is the basic consideration for the future discussions with regulators.

You have suggested the Bethereum token could be used by “online betting agencies, bookmakers as well as betting shops across the world”. How could the token be used in these instances? Do you foresee resistance from the traditional and online gambling sectors?

Our ultimate objective is to establish the Bether token as the market standard for betting. Together with adapted versions of our betting Smart Contracts, we will offer our Bether token to conventional betting agencies, as a part of our business model.

Helping conventional betting agencies transition to the Bether token and a customized set of Smart Contracts provides them with numerous benefits, such as:

Decreased complexity of their betting platforms

complexity of their betting platforms The ability to provide instant payouts to their players

to provide instant payouts to their players The highest possible level of security, player protection and transparency that will become standard and sought after by the players with the global adoption of Blockchain technologies.

Gambling has been accused in many instances as a tool for money laundering. Is there a way for you to prevent these issues within the Bethereum network?

There is no money used on our platform.

What has been your happiest moment so far working on Bethereum?

Bethereum has been chosen as the only blockchain betting project to present at ICE Totally Gaming in London on February 7th, 2018! In 2017, ICE delivered a record audited total attendance of 30,213. Looking forward to meeting you in London.

On the flipside, what has been the most painful, or perhaps the most regretful decision you’ve made with Bethereum?

It was very hard for me to decide to leave the corporate world. After few months I can say it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

Is Bethereum already working with notable businesses or firms? Are there any future partnerships in process? If yes, can you explain briefly about it?

We are already in discussion with potential partners for our platform. We are positively surprised by the interest for cooperation with us. There are already ongoing discussions but, unfortunately, I cannot reveal the details.

Tell us more about BTHR. What is its function in the platform and what can token holders expect from it in the future?

The main unit of a transaction within the Bethereum Platform is the Bether token — an unmineable ERC20 deflationary utility token (BTHR), which serves as the platform’s instrument for betting. It is easily transferable and storable in widely used Ethereum wallets that support ERC20 tokens, such as MyEtherWallet or Mist.

Bether as an In app token:

The Bether token will be used for all transactions in the betting process. It enables the use of Smart Contracts, which make the Bethereum Platform transparent and secure.

Bether as a Global Gambling Token:

Our ultimate objective is to establish the Bether token as the market standard for betting. Together with adapted versions of our betting Smart Contracts, we will offer our Bether token to conventional betting agencies, as a part of our business model.

Helping conventional betting agencies transition to the Bether token and a customized set of Smart Contracts provides them with numerous benefits, such as:

Decreased complexity of their betting platforms

The ability to provide instant payouts to their players

The highest possible level of security, player protection and transparency that will become standard and sought after by the players with the global adoption of Blockchain technologies.

Value Holder

All bets on the Bethereum platform will be placed using the Bether token. After the token sale, all the circulating tokens by will be held by the token sale participants and Bethereum team members, and unsold tokens will be burned.Once the Bethereum platform is launched, players will need to obtain tokens from a fixed supply, hence driving up token value.

The value of the Bether token will further rise as the number of players and bets increases over time, increasing demand for Bether. Due to token burning, the supply will gradually decrease. An increase in demand and decrease in supply means, in a theory, a rise in value.

What do you think is the biggest challenge or obstacle Bethereum will face? How do you plan to tackle that challenge?

There are more challenges ahead of us in 2018. First, we have to be successful in the token sale. But here our journey just begins. We have to deliver iOS, Android and web app with blockchain backend. We want to extend our offer by other sports, eSports, Fantasy, live and community betting. And to integrate first partners to our platform.

Moving on to more personal stuff, what does a typical day in your life look like?

Most typical is that each day is different. But what is typical, every day I am learning new interesting things and have the possibility to cooperate with incredibly smart people.

Can you express one personal opinion of yours about the blockchain? It doesn’t matter if it’s negative or positive, we just want to hear your thoughts on it.

As a technology, blockchain has immense potential for various organizations, making them more transparent, democratic, effective, and most important of all, capable of reaching a level of security that will change how many industries operate.

Finally, what other personal goals (besides your career) do you have in life? Is there anything else in life you want to achieve?

I believe that one day I will be able to help the education of young people so that they are better prepared for the challenges of today’s world.

That concludes our Interview with Peter Gal

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