How Boku helps gaming industry leaders acquire new paying users

In an increasingly globalized gaming industry, game developers are constantly seeking new opportunities for revenue growth and user engagement. According to Newzoo’s Global Gamer Study¹, 79% of the total online population engages with video games across many dimensions, including playing, viewing, creating content, and socializing. This means game developers need to start thinking how to effectively acquire and retain customers across various platforms in new geographies. Global digital entertainment and gaming merchants should incorporate local payment methods into their payment strategy, ensuring a seamless and convenient payment experience for consumers in various locations.

Why mobile wallets in emerging markets?

In recent years the importance of local payment methods, especially digital wallets, has grown rapidly. According to Juniper Research², the volume of mobile wallet transactions is expected to reach 1.2 trillion by 2028. In a number of emerging markets, the lack of credit card penetration and infrastructure has led merchants and consumers leapfrogging credit cards. The Far East & China will become the largest digital wallet markets, driven by the large number of users of WeChat Pay and Alipay. Africa & Middle East digital wallet usage is expected to grow by 144.2% by the end of 2026.

Adding more wallets accelerates growth

By implementing local payment methods through Boku, thereby improving the user experience, a leading gaming merchant witnessed a significant 79% increase in total payment volume.  Players who previously faced payment barriers can now easily  subscribe using their preferred local payment methods, resulting in a broader subscriber base and increased total payment volume.

Increased active users growth

Local payment methods contribute to a smoother user experience, reducing friction during the signup and renewal processes. After launching AliPay and WechatPay China with Boku, a leading gaming merchant saw +111% YoY monthly active user growth.

So, how does Boku help?

Integrating various payment methods is challenging. For almost 15 years, Boku’s specialised focus on local payment acceptance has delivered better results for our clients.

Leading gaming merchants partner with Boku to integrate non-card linked wallets, complementing established payment methods. Why? Because those wallets, globally, are expected to capture a 19.3% market share in digital-goods purchase transactions by 2023².  

Furthermore, Boku understands merchants’ needs. We develop custom connections that meet or exceed challenging requirements such as customized UX flows and enabling tokenized solutions. Our tailored integrations enable merchants to confidently launch new payment methods at scale, quickly.

That is why the world’s largest gaming merchants like Microsoft Xbox, Tencent, Electronic Arts, Riot Games and Epic Games choose Boku.