Xsolla is a global commerce platform built exclusively for the video game industry. It provides developers and publishers with the tools to monetize, distribute, and scale their games worldwide, eliminating the complexity of international payments, compliance, and operations.
Xsolla’s payment infrastructure supports 1,000 payment methods across 130 currencies and acts as merchant-of-record, handling tax, invoicing, and legal responsibilities so developers and publishers can focus on game development. With a presence in 200 countries and partnerships with major platforms, the company enables developers and publishers of all sizes to reach players globally, manage live operations, and grow revenue efficiently and securely.
Xsolla is headquartered in Los Angeles.
SME BUSINESS REVIEW reached out to Berkley Egenes, Chief Growth Officer at Xsolla, for an interview to discuss the company’s evolution, global impact on the gaming industry, and the innovative solutions it offers to developers and publishers worldwide. Here’s what Mr. Egenes had to say.
Interview Excerpts
How did Xsolla come into existence, and what early challenges in the video game industry influenced its decision to focus exclusively on serving developers and publishers?
Xsolla was founded in 2005 by Aleksandr Agapitov, when global game monetization was far more difficult than most people remember today. Back then, selling a game internationally wasn’t just complicated it was often impossible for smaller developers. Cross-border payment acceptance was expensive, fragmented, and largely inaccessible, particularly in emerging markets where credit cards and traditional banking infrastructure were limited or non-existent.
Developers faced high transaction fees from legacy payment providers, restrictive contracts, and a lack of localized options for players. As games began reaching global audiences faster than commerce infrastructure could keep up, it became clear that generic payment solutions weren’t designed for the realities of gaming.
When Xsolla established its headquarters in Los Angeles in 2010, it wasn’t just a geographic decision, but a strategic one. Being close to the entertainment and technology industries reinforced a core belief that has guided the company ever since: games require specialized commerce infrastructure tailored to how players buy, play, and engage.
That foundational insight still defines Xsolla today. Nearly 20 years later, we work exclusively with the video game industry and support more than 1,500 developers worldwide, helping them reach players worldwide without being constrained by payment, compliance, or platform limitations.
What key gaps and needs in the video game industry does Xsolla address today?
Despite the industry’s evolution, many of the core challenges developers face today remain rooted in scale and complexity.
The first is global payments. Games are inherently borderless, but commerce is not. Developers sell into more than 200 countries, each with different currencies, preferred payment methods, regulations, and consumer behaviors. Xsolla supports more than 1,000 payment methods across 130 currencies, so players can pay how they want, wherever they are directly impacting conversion and revenue.
The second major gap is compliance and tax management. Selling games globally means dealing with VAT, GST, sales tax, invoicing requirements, and ever-changing regulations. As the merchant of record, Xsolla assumes the legal and financial responsibility for transactions, allowing developers to focus on building great games rather than building international finance teams.
Another critical need is direct-to-consumer monetization. As platform policies evolve and developers seek greater ownership of player relationships, they need infrastructure that supports web-based storefronts, subscriptions, live events, and cross-platform economies. Tools such as Xsolla Web Shop, Publishing Suite, and LiveOps Management enable developers to operate their own commerce channels while maintaining platform flexibility.
Finally, fraud prevention remains a major issue in gaming, where fraud rates are significantly higher than in many other industries. Our anti-fraud systems are designed specifically for gaming use cases, protecting both developers and players without adding friction to the checkout experience.
How does Xsolla support developers and publishers with distribution, marketing, and monetization?
Xsolla is designed to support developers throughout the entire lifecycle of a game, from launch through live operations to long-term growth.
On the distribution side, our Publishing Suite enables developers to publish and sell games directly across PC, web, and cross-platform environments. This includes launcher technology, digital distribution infrastructure, and customizable storefronts that give developers full control over how their games are presented and sold.
For marketing and user acquisition, we offer tools that help developers grow efficiently. Offerwall monetizes non-paying players while driving zero-cost user acquisition. The Xsolla Partner Network connects developers with content creators and influencers, while our quarterly State of Play reports provide market intelligence and data-driven insights to inform go-to-market strategies.
When it comes to monetization, we support multiple business models, including in-game purchases, subscriptions, battle passes, and virtual goods. Our Web Shop enables branded direct-to-consumer storefronts that bypass platform fees, while our global payments infrastructure ensures localized pricing and optimized checkout experiences.
Live service games are supported through our LiveOps Management Suite, which helps teams plan seasonal events, manage content updates, and drive engagement during key moments. Through initiatives such as the Xsolla Incentive Program, we help developers reinvest in growth by providing free user-acquisition budgets.
What sets Xsolla apart from other companies serving developers and publishers?
Xsolla’s differentiation comes down to three things: specialization, breadth, and scale.
We were built exclusively for games. Unlike general-purpose platforms such as Stripe or Shopify, Xsolla has spent nearly two decades solving problems unique to gaming from virtual currencies and battle passes to complex in-game economies. Our products are designed by people who understand how games operate, not retrofitted from other industries.
We also offer a complete commerce ecosystem. Many companies focus on a single piece of the puzzle payments, analytics, or distribution. Xsolla brings these together into a unified platform that includes payments, web shops, launcher technology, publishing infrastructure, marketing tools, fraud prevention, and funding programs like Xsolla Accelerator.
At a global level, our infrastructure is unmatched. We operate in more than 200 countries, support 130 currencies, and process hundreds of millions of transactions annually with 99.98% uptime even during major launches and peak events.
And finally, our merchant-of-record model fundamentally changes how developers operate globally. By handling tax compliance, regulatory requirements, and financial liability, we remove one of the biggest operational burdens developers face when scaling internationally.
Xsolla collaborates closely with major gaming platforms and partners. What opportunities does this create?
Partnerships enable us to deliver value far beyond what any single company could deliver on its own. Our integrations with major platforms and technology providers ensure that developers benefit from proven, battle-tested infrastructure.
On the marketing side, our MMP partnerships with AppsFlyer, Adjust, Singular, and Airbridge connect attribution data across mobile and web, helping developers understand how marketing spend translates into Web Shop revenue. Partnerships with Affirm introduce buy-now-pay-later options that increase average transaction values.
We also work closely with regional payment providers to unlock growth in emerging markets. Recent expansions with Mercado Pago in Uruguay and UPI in India, and partnerships with MTN Group and Bharti Airtel across Africa, help developers monetize in high-growth regions where traditional payments alone aren’t sufficient.
Most importantly, these partnerships reduce friction. Integrations with engines such as Unity or Defold enable developers to build a full commerce infrastructure with minimal engineering effort.
Which Xsolla solutions have proven most impactful?
Direct-to-consumer tools have been especially transformative. As monetization rules continue to evolve across mobile platforms, Web Shop technology allows developers to build branded storefronts, bypass platform fees, and retain ownership of player data. On average, we’re seeing up to 15% growth in lifetime value from Web Shop implementations, with Offerwall creating incremental revenue from players who wouldn’t otherwise monetize.
Pay Station remains foundational. Supporting over 1,000 payment methods globally enables developers to optimize conversion rates in every market, and adding a single localized payment option can increase conversion rates by 20–30%.
For live service games, the LiveOps Management Suite enables teams to maximize engagement during seasonal events and content drops. Behind the scenes, our anti-fraud systems protect developers from losses that can quickly escalate through chargebacks and penalties.
How does Xsolla support companies of different sizes?
Xsolla is built to scale alongside developers. For indie studios, we remove barriers to entry. There are no setup fees, no monthly minimums, and no need for specialized engineers. Developers can quickly integrate tools like Web Shop and pay only when they succeed. Programs like Xsolla Accelerator provide funding and mentorship at early stages.
Mid-sized developers benefit from deeper analytics, A/B testing, region-specific payment optimization, and dedicated account management to refine pricing and merchandising strategies.
For large publishers, we provide enterprise-grade infrastructure, custom integrations, dedicated support teams, and negotiated commercial terms. Across all segments, the merchant-of-record model ensures global compliance without scaling internal finance teams.
How does Xsolla’s merchant-of-record model benefit developers?
Being merchant of record is one of the most meaningful ways we help developers scale globally.
In traditional models, developers are legally responsible for tax registration, calculation, filing, audits, disputes, and chargebacks in every market they sell into. This quickly becomes unmanageable without large legal and finance teams.
When Xsolla acts as merchant of record, we assume that responsibility. We handle global tax compliance, regulatory monitoring, dispute management, and chargebacks. Developers receive net revenue and detailed reporting without operational complexity.
This allows a small indie studio to launch globally on day one with the same level of compliance coverage as a AAA publisher, while shielding teams from financial and legal risk.
What is Xsolla’s outlook for the next five years?
Our strategy centers on several long-term shifts shaping the industry.
Direct-to-consumer and omnichannel commerce will continue to grow as players expect seamless experiences across mobile, PC, and console. We’re investing in unified wallets and cross-platform purchasing capabilities to support this behavior.
Emerging markets represent massive opportunity. The next billion gamers will come from regions such as Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. We’re expanding local partnerships and payment infrastructure to support this growth.
Live service games will remain dominant, requiring tools that support ongoing engagement, personalization, and seasonal content. And we’ll continue expanding our ecosystem of partners and integrations to ensure developers can connect the tools they need.
At every stage, our focus remains the same: supporting developers of all sizes with infrastructure that lets them scale globally and sustainably.
ABOUT | BERKLEY EGENES
Berkley Egenes serves as Xsolla’s Chief Marketing & Growth Officer, leading global marketing, branding, growth strategy, communications, and demand generation. He drives user acquisition, campaigns, brand presence, and revenue growth through strategic partnerships and go-to-market initiatives.
Egenes joined Xsolla in early 2020 as Vice President of Global Marketing, was promoted to Chief Marketing Officer in December 2022, and assumed his current role in 2024.
With more than 25 years of experience, he has led organizations at the intersection of gaming, esports, entertainment, and consumer technology, including Ghost Gaming and multiple global brands such as Kellogg’s, AB-InBev, NASCAR, IBM, Walmart, and the NBA.
He holds a BBA in Marketing and International Business from Texas A&M University and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame.
