CASE STUDY
Redefining Online Gaming
Pure Poker seeks to revolutionize online gaming through building player trust, deep community engagement, and seamless payment operations.
The Trust Revolution in Online Gaming
Online gaming stands at a critical inflection point. While the industry is growing exponentially, its most valuable, and most fragile, commodity – player trust – remains a serious challenge.
In an ecosystem where milliseconds matter and every transaction carries weight, the difference between success and failure often comes down to one fundamental question: Do players trust you with their money?
This trust isn't built through flashy graphics or aggressive marketing campaigns. It's earned through consistent, reliable payment operations that demonstrate respect for players' time, money, and gaming experience. It's reinforced every time a player deposits funds knowing they'll be available instantly, and every time winnings flow seamlessly back to their preferred payment method without delay or complexity.
It is here that Pure Poker, founded by Columbia University squash team captains Jacob Bulbulia and Harold Castiaux – the company’s Co-Founders and CEO and CTO (respectively) – are setting a new standard for player-centric gaming operations.
Meet Pure Poker: Where Community Meets Competition
Pure Poker isn't just another online poker platform. It's a revolutionary approach to building genuine gaming communities. Operating under the philosophy that great poker experiences emerge from trust, transparency, and player satisfaction, Pure Poker is an innovative online poker platform offering rake-free, community-focused real-money poker experiences.
Emphasizing fairness, transparency, and security, Pure Poker is where players can truly focus on what matters most: the game itself.
Redefining Trust Through Personal Experience
Pure Poker was born from an intensely personal experience. Jacob Bulbulia, Pure Poker’s Co-Founder and CEO, discovered his passion for poker during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. What started as a hobby quickly escalated into a serious pursuit, leading Jacob to build a significant bankroll from online poker.
However, when he won a major tournament, the unregulated online platform he trusted ghosted him. Mr. Bulbulia recalls this harsh lesson vividly: "Eventually, I won a tournament and was just totally ghosted and scammed for over $100,000… it was enough to make me stop playing poker for a while … and to ask myself, ‘Why did this happen?’"
Determined to never let another player experience such betrayal, Mr. Bulbulia and Mr. Castiaux immersed themselves in the legal intricacies of online poker, identifying a crucial regulatory change in 2022 allowing real-money social gambling across state lines.
Pure Poker: The First Step
"Pure Group was founded to build a new kind of online poker platform — one emphasizing transparency, fairness, community, and user security above all else."
- Jacob Bulbilia, Co-Founder & CEO, Pure Group
Creating the Pure Poker Difference
The core innovation at Pure Poker lies in its unwavering commitment to community-first gaming.
"Our two core principles when we're building are social and community first. There are no anonymous profiles; every profile is attached to a real person."
- Jacob Bulbilia, Co-Founder & CEO, Pure Group
Unlike traditional online poker sites, Pure Poker does not extract profit through rake or transaction fees. Instead, it fosters engagement by building genuine poker communities centered on shared interests and social connections.
"People really like to play poker with people they know. Our retention is significantly higher when we're onboarding groups who play together."
- Jacob Bulbilia, Co-Founder & CEO, Pure Group
Pure Poker’s platform will deliver robust features like community moderation tools and skill-based matchmaking, providing an environment where players feel safe, respected, and engaged.
"Giving the power to moderate your own community to users is really important… we can see a huge variety of different types of communities and ecosystems forming."
- Harold Castiaux, Co-Founder & CTO, Pure Group
Pure Poker also recognizes the critical role of payment operations in building trust and maximizing player experience:
"Our biggest value proposition right now is no nonsense real-money poker. Players can sign up, register, and deposit within 90 seconds. Partnering with MassPay helps us ensure that our payment ops are seamless, secure, and instant, which is fundamental to building player trust."
- Harold Castiaux, Co-Founder & CTO, Pure Group
Beyond Poker: A Community-Centric Vision
Pure Poker sees itself not just as a poker platform but as a catalyst for broader community interaction. By integrating principles inspired by platforms like chess.com and Fortnite, Pure Poker intends to transform online poker into a vibrant, social gaming experience. "We're trying to build the best poker experience possible by bringing principles applied by gaming companies such as Fortnite or chess.com to the online poker market and changing what people expect," stated Mr. Bulbulia.
Furthermore, the team envisions Pure Poker as the digital home for both online and in-person events.
"We think Pure Poker can host these across the U.S. in different cities for different communities. In-person poker can be a really great experience for people to bond over and create the foundation for continuing the games – and the community – online," added Mr. Castiaux.
The Future of Pure Poker: Peer-to-Peer Expansion
Looking forward, Pure Poker aims to lead a paradigm shift within the online gaming and wagering industries.
Pure Poker sees itself expanding beyond poker, envisioning "a new form of customizable zero-fee social wagering that doesn't exist right now."
In a market increasingly burdened by rising fees and restrictive betting frameworks, Pure Poker positions itself as the revolutionary alternative: community-driven, transparent, and player-centric.
Players can look forward to innovative features like AI-driven coaching tools, customizable game avatars, and skill-enhancing analytics – all designed to enhance engagement and personal growth within the game.
Mr. Castiaux noted, "We want to build a much more engaging, user-friendly social experience and be able to monetize more like a video game, offering things users actually want."
Mr. Bulbulia further summarizes this bold vision: "We want Pure Poker to be the dominant global platform where communities thrive around skill, trust, and mutual enjoyment – free from excessive fees and aligned entirely with player interests."
In redefining trust, community, and gaming experiences, Pure Poker stands ready to shape the future of online gaming, one community at a time.