Countless game creators across the globe pour their hearts into brave, innovative ideas, only to face tough roadblocks—complex global distribution, fragmented markets, or limited funding that dims their dreams before they can shine. These challenges often hold back creativity and keep remarkable games from reaching players worldwide. This is where Xsolla steps in as a trusted partner, breaking down these barriers with steadfast commitment. They provide creators with the tools, connections, and opportunities needed to turn those dreams into reality, ensuring that every game, no matter where it comes from, has a chance to captivate and delight players worldwide.

Xsolla stands as a global leader in video game commerce, headquartered in Los Angeles with a dynamic presence in cities like London, Berlin, Seoul, Beijing, Raleigh, Tokyo, Montreal, and Kuala Lumpur. Their robust solutions span over 200 regions, supporting 1,000+ payment methods, 130+ currencies, and 20+ languages to make games accessible to all. Tailored exclusively for the gaming industry, Xsolla’s innovative platform simplifies distribution, marketing, and monetization, empowering creators—from indie developers to giants like Valve, Twitch, and Epic Games—to expand their reach and revenue. Their mission is to level the playing field, offering every creator, regardless of background, the support to succeed.

At CIO Bulletin, we had the distinct privilege of interviewing Chris Hewish, Chief Strategy and Communications Officer at Xsolla. He shared valuable insights into how the company turns ideas into games that spark joy and inspire creators—by forging connections, removing obstacles, and fostering a vibrant cycle of innovation where everyone plays and everyone wins.

Interview Highlights

Can you share the inspiring story behind Xsolla’s inception and how its mission to provide equal access to everyone in the gaming industry took shape?

Xsolla was founded in 2005 by Aleksandr Agapitov, a Russian entrepreneur with a passion for games and a strong belief in democratizing access to the gaming industry. Xsolla’s inception aimed to address a key challenge for indie and small studios: making it easier to monetize games globally.

At the time, the gaming industry was dominated by major publishers, leaving independent developers facing significant barriers—limited access to global payment systems, fraud, taxes, and lack of distribution infrastructure. Agapitov, with his experience in online payments, identified a gap: game creators were innovative but lacked business tools. His vision was to level the playing field, offering the same infrastructure that big studios had access to.

From the start, Xsolla focused on eliminating technical and financial barriers in game distribution and monetization, providing:

• A global payment gateway supporting 700+ methods in 200+ regions
• Anti-fraud systems and tax compliance tools
• Storefront solutions for direct game sales
• Partner and influencer programs for marketing
• A no-code platform for non-technical creators

Xsolla’s journey is inspiring for its consistent commitment to inclusivity. While it began small, the company now powers monetization for major gaming names, yet still serves solo developers and emerging studios. Xsolla’s success lies not just in growth, but in staying true to its mission: enabling creators worldwide to bring their visions to life without technical or financial barriers.

Xsolla’s mission statement, “Gaming’s Best is Yet to Come,” is incredibly forward-looking. How does this vision guide your strategic decisions and partnerships globally?

At Xsolla, we fundamentally believe the future of gaming is inclusive, creator-driven, and globally connected. This belief drives our mission to remove barriers for developers, especially those from emerging markets and small studios and open doors traditionally limited to those with access to funding, infrastructure, or publishers.

We’re focused not just on where the industry is, but where it’s going. That’s why we’ve invested in localized payments, compliance, and business tools across Southeast Asia, LATAM, Africa, and the Middle East—regions rich with untapped gaming potential.

By partnering with local payment providers and governments, we ensure developers worldwide have equal opportunities to thrive, and players everywhere can access the content they love.

We’ve developed solutions like Pay Station, Web Shop, and our no-code tools so that developers—even those without deep technical resources—can launch and scale on their terms. We know that the next global hit could come from a two-person team in a dorm room, and we want to be the infrastructure behind their breakout.

“Gaming’s best is yet to come” is a challenge to ourselves, to the industry, and to creators everywhere: don’t settle for the status quo. There’s more to be built. More stories to tell. More communities to grow. At Xsolla, we’re humbled to be a part of that journey—not just as a service provider, but as a partner who truly believes that the next generation of gaming will be more accessible, more diverse, and more extraordinary than anything that came before. And we’re building for that future—every day.

Can you walk us through Xsolla’s key products and services, and what unique features make them stand out in empowering game developers and publishers worldwide?

Xsolla offers a comprehensive suite of products designed to help game developers and publishers launch, monetize, and scale their games globally—without needing to build complex backend infrastructure.

At the core is Xsolla Pay Station, a powerful payment solution that supports over 700 global and local payment methods, enabling seamless in-game purchases with built-in fraud protection and compliance. What sets it apart is its localization—adapting to regional currencies, languages, and tax systems so developers can focus on building, not paperwork.

The Web Shop empowers mobile and online games to sell virtual goods directly to players, bypassing traditional platform fees and fostering stronger player relationships. Paired with Site Builder, developers can launch branded websites with integrated commerce tools—no coding needed.

Funding Club and Partner Network help studios find investors, influencers, and affiliates to support marketing and growth, while the Digital Distribution Hub connects games to dozens of global platforms in one step.

What truly differentiates Xsolla is its commitment to accessibility and scalability—whether you’re an indie team or a global publisher, Xsolla provides plug-and-play solutions tailored to your needs, allowing creators worldwide to thrive on their terms.

With support for 1,000+ payment methods and 130+ currencies, how does Xsolla ensure seamless and secure transactions across 200+ geographies for developers of all sizes?

Xsolla ensures seamless and secure transactions across 200+ geographies by building a robust, globally localized payment infrastructure that removes the complexity of international commerce for developers.

With support for over 1,000 payment methods—including credit cards, digital wallets, mobile payments, and regional options—and 130+ currencies, Xsolla’s Pay Station adapts to the preferred methods of players in each region. This drastically improves conversion rates and makes monetization truly global.

Behind the scenes, Xsolla handles taxation, currency conversion, compliance, and fraud prevention, leveraging AI-driven risk analysis and regional legal expertise. This ensures developers stay compliant with local regulations, including GDPR, VAT, and regional tax laws, without needing dedicated legal or finance teams.

What makes this powerful is that it’s all delivered through scalable, easy-to-integrate tools—accessible to indie developers and AAA studios alike. Developers simply plug in the tech, and Xsolla handles the rest: secure payments, real-time fraud checks, refunds, reporting, and more.

Ultimately, Xsolla’s approach gives creators the confidence to sell globally from day one, with enterprise-grade security and seamless experiences for players everywhere.

With offices in Los Angeles, Seoul, Berlin, and beyond, how does Xsolla foster collaboration across its global teams to stay aligned with its video game-centric mission?

Through one unified and shared mission: to empower game creators everywhere. Collaboration across these teams is essential, and we’ve built a culture and structure that enables it. At the core is a “follow-the-sun” model, where teams in different time zones seamlessly pass projects, insights, and support across regions. This ensures around-the-clock service for partners and a continuous flow of innovation. We use centralized communication platforms, regular cross-functional syncs, and shared KPIs to keep everyone aligned on goals—from product launches to partner success.

What makes it work is our deep-rooted gaming DNA. Whether you’re in LA talking to AAA publishers or in Seoul working with mobile developers, everyone at Xsolla speaks the same language—the language of games. We hire not just for skills, but for passion for the industry, so every region contributes unique market insight while staying true to our global vision.

The combination of local expertise and global alignment allows us to adapt quickly, innovate collaboratively, and stay laser-focused on helping developers succeed, no matter where they’re based.

Your core values—L.O.V.E (Learning, Openness, Vision, Excellence)—are deeply inspiring. How do these values influence Xsolla’s culture and drive your team to push boundaries?

Our core values are more than internal mantras; they’re the foundation of our culture and the engine behind our innovation. These values guide how we think, work, and serve the global gaming community every day.

We embrace curiosity and constant improvement—not just in our products, but in ourselves. Whether it’s staying ahead of emerging trends in monetization or understanding the needs of developers in new markets, our teams are encouraged to experiment, ask questions, and adapt quickly.

Across our global offices, we promote transparent communication and radical collaboration. Ideas can come from anyone, regardless of title or location. This openness fosters trust, empowers decision-making, and helps us better understand the diverse perspectives of our partners.

Whether supporting a solo developer or a major publisher, we hold ourselves accountable to the highest level of performance, security, and service. Excellence means delivering value, reliably and globally, every time. Together, L.O.V.E. is how we turn the mission into a movement.

As a leader in game commerce, how does Xsolla envision the future of the gaming industry, and what role will the company play in shaping it over the next decade?

We envision a future where the gaming industry is more decentralized, creator-driven, and globally inclusive than ever before. We believe the next decade will be defined by shifts that empower developers to build direct relationships with players, monetize on their terms, and scale without traditional gatekeepers—and we’re building the infrastructure to make that happen.

We’ll continue to be the backend engine for creative freedom—offering tools that let developers launch, scale, and sustain their games with minimal friction. Our focus will remain on lowering barriers: through localized payment solutions, no-code tools, and global distribution platforms.

Simply put, we’re here to enable the next generation of gaming entrepreneurs, and we’ll continue shaping the industry by ensuring anyone, anywhere, can turn a great idea into a thriving game business.

Chris Hewish: Leading Innovation in Gaming with Vision and Strategy

Chris Hewish, Chief Strategy and Communications Officer at Xsolla, is an award-winning interactive entertainment executive with a distinguished track record across every major segment of the video game industry. He has led large-scale teams—often exceeding 300 members—at renowned companies including Activision, DreamWorks Animation, Survios, Skydance, and now Xsolla.

A passionate gamer turned industry leader, Chris has designed and produced more than 50 games that have generated over $1 billion in revenue. His unique blend of creative insight and strategic business acumen allows him to drive innovation, lead cross-functional teams, and shape compelling experiences that resonate with global audiences. With deep expertise in content creation, market strategy, and brand development, Chris continues to be a driving force in shaping the future of interactive entertainment.

“What truly differentiates Xsolla is its commitment to accessibility and scalability—whether you’re an indie team or a global publisher, Xsolla provides plug-and-play solutions tailored to your needs, allowing creators worldwide to thrive on their terms.”