Atucha Strategic Advisory and MentorBet Form a Strategic Alliance for the Mexican Market

Atucha Strategic Advisory (ASA) and MentorBet, the consultancy arm of Grupo Oklahoma, have formed a strategic alliance to develop the Mexican betting and gaming market. Antonio Lara will head MentorBet's participation on the Mexican side.

The teams will work together on the ground for the first time at SiGMA North America in Mexico City, where ASA's Ramiro Atucha and Eliane Nunes will be meeting local operators and suppliers from 1 to 3 September.

ASA works with a deliberately small group of technology and content suppliers, one company per vertical, and runs their commercial development across Latin America. It currently represents Kiron Interactive in virtual sports, End2End in multiplayer bingo and Immensity in marketing attribution, with further verticals being added.

MentorBet is the consultancy arm of Grupo Oklahoma, the Mexican group headed by Antonio “Toño” Macías, with more than twenty years in the country’s gaming industry. The group manufactures and supplies equipment for land based casinos, runs a dealer training school and has opened operations in Peru, Colombia and Costa Rica. MentorBet was launched to help international companies enter and grow in Mexico, and is led by Antonio Lara, who spent seven years at AIEJA, the Mexican association of gaming permit holders, operators and suppliers, where he coordinated its online gaming commission.

The alliance covers market intelligence and joint support in identifying the best route into Mexico for ASA's clients, while bringing high-value solutions to the local gaming ecosystem.

Ramiro Atucha, founder of Atucha Strategic Advisory, said:

“I have known Antonio Lara for many years and I have always admired his work, particularly what he did at AIEJA, where he earned the respect of operators, permit holders and suppliers alike. What made the decision easy was finding a group behind him with more than twenty years in this market, and Macías backing the project from the top. We understand Latin America, but understanding the region is not enough. Every country has its own regulation, its own timing and its own codes. Mexico is not Brazil and it is not Colombia. That is why in each market we look for the best possible ally, someone who allows us to zoom in and be on the ground. In Mexico that ally is MentorBet.”

Antonio Macías, Grupo Oklahoma, added:

“When Antonio Lara brought this to me, it took one conversation. Ramiro has built and run companies this market knows well, and he is bringing in companies that solve real problems for Mexican operators. Our group has spent more than twenty years in this industry, and everything we have built here is available to ASA and to the companies it represents. Antonio Lara leads this alliance for us, and he has our full backing.”

Antonio Lara, MentorBet, commented:

“I am delighted with this alliance. I have known Ramiro for years and there is a mutual appreciation and respect that made this conversation natural from day one. Mexico has a great opportunity ahead of it, but also nuances you need to understand in order to make the most of them. What we bring is the whole structure of the group and our daily work on the ground, so that the companies ASA represents have a local partner here rather than a remote view of the market.”