Canada

The importance of agile tech in a rapidly evolving market

Published

11 months ago

June 26, 2023

Compliable’s licensing platform enables sportsbooks and iGaming businesses to obtain employee, entity, vendor and other businesses licenses across multiple states in the US, ensuring speed to market which is crucial as regulation in the region evolves. We caught up with Chief Regulatory Officer, Justin Stempeck, on how Compliable stays agile, adapting its solution to support an industry with increasing regulatory demands.

How has the ever-changing gambling regulation in the US had an impact on your offering since you launched three years ago?

The nature of the industry we are in forces us to constantly think ahead to be prepared for any changes to existing regulation or new markets opening up. Since we launched our solution, we have built on it to ensure we can offer our clients the support they need, and this has been driven by how the sector has developed in the US over the last few years. Our product offering now includes multiple modules to support any type of license that gambling companies need to enter regulated US states. The regulatory landscape is complex, but our platform removes a big hurdle for the industry, helping companies quickly apply and manage their key, employee, vendor, and entity licenses across many states.

As a tech start-up, we are always looking at ways to strengthen our platform and ensure we stay ahead of our competition. We work closely with our clients and partners to understand their requirements and incorporate this into our product development, and we also have a close dialogue with regulators. We have repeatedly worked with customers to understand their licensing workflow and customize our product to best fit their existing methods to offer them the most value.

What advantages does Compliable’s platform have over its main competitors in the market?

What sets our solution apart the most is the degree of completeness that it offers as it finalises applications fully, entering all data and documentation where it needs to be. The simplicity of using our platform is a huge benefit to anyone who goes through what is often a complicated application process.

The user journey is therefore important, and offering a streamlined and simple process as people navigate through the platform is something we have worked hard on. We have extensive FAQs and a live chat available, further improving the user experience and the support we can offer. The US is a market we know extremely well and as experts in licensing and compliance, we want to offer more than just a tech solution.

Our job is never done at Compliable as we are always challenging ourselves to do more. With the modern tech our solution is built on, we have the possibility to continue to innovate compared with other legacy products on the market.

What role has reg tech played in the expansion of the US gambling markets and could more be done in this space?

It has been tremendously important for many companies who are smaller as they might not have the resources to handle it themselves. While hiring outside counsel to handle licensing applications has long been the norm for many companies, we instead empower the company itself to effectively complete the work in a time/cost efficient and thorough manner.

The reg tech space has evolved quickly over the years and there are so many areas where innovation can truly help gambling companies focus on what matters most to grow their business. Employee and entity licensing are an often-forgotten piece of the equation where using our solution can really make a difference. Our platform makes licensing much more approachable for people and we will continue to build out the functionality to ensure the license management process is as efficient and intuitive as possible.

Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO)

Soft2Bet strengthens integrity monitoring with IBIA membership in Ontario

Published

13 hours ago

May 6, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

soft2bet-strengthens-integrity-monitoring-with-ibia-membership-in-ontario

Soft2Bet, a leading casino and sportsbook platform provider, has joined the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) and activated its membership in Ontario, Canada, following its licensing in the Canadian province.

Soft2bet obtained its Certificate of Registration from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) at the end of March, where the company’s Ontario-focused brand Tooniebet.com will now feed into IBIA’s world-leading sports betting integrity monitoring platform before worldwide implementation in the coming months.

IBIA includes over 50 of the world’s leading sports betting and gaming companies, who operate over 125 sports betting brands. Soft2Bet’s decision to join the association further strengthens its own internal betting integrity protocols and IBIA’s position as the world’s leading sports betting integrity monitoring body.

David Yatom Hay, General Counsel at Soft2Bet, commented: “Soft2Bet is delighted to be joining the IBIA as we strengthen our own betting integrity monitoring processes and play our part in furthering the IBIA’s long-standing work on this key issue. Ontario is a world class iGaming jurisdiction; it will be the first market where we will implement our IBIA membership and we look forward to deploying the monitoring infrastructure worldwide in all the other markets in which we operate.”

Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA, said: “Soft2Bet is a very welcome addition to IBIA, further strengthening our position in the Ontario market. The operator’s decision to join IBIA demonstrates its desire to utilise the best integrity protection available for its sportsbook product. The association is delighted to be able to integrate Tooniebet within our integrity monitoring system and looks forward to working closely with Soft2Bet to maintain the high integrity of its sportsbook.”

IBIA is a not-for-profit body that has no competing conflicts with the delivery of commercial services to other sectors and is run by operators and for operators to protect regulated sports betting markets from match-fixing. IBIA’s global monitoring network is a highly effective anti-corruption tool, detecting and reporting suspicious activity in regulated betting markets.

Through the IBIA monitoring network it is possible to track transactional activities linked to individual customer accounts. IBIA members generate more than $300bn in annual betting turnover (handle), accounting for approximately 50% of the global commercial regulated land-based and online sports betting sector, and in excess of 50% for online alone.

IBIA recently released a report on the Availability of Sports Betting Products which highlighted Ontario as a leading regulated gambling jurisdiction, with an expected onshore channelisation for sports betting of 92% in 2024 forecast to rise to 97% in2028. IBIA currently represents over 60% of the private sports betting operators licensed in the province. All online sportsbetting operators licensed in Ontario are required to be part of a betting integrity monitoring body.

IBIA’s Q1 2024 report detailed 56 alerts during the quarter. IBIA alerts contributed to the investigations and subsequent successful sanctioning of 21 clubs, players and officials in 2023, an increase on the 15 sanctioned in 2022.

British Columbia Lottery Corporation

SCCG Management Signs Contract with British Columbia Lottery Corporation

Published

1 week ago

April 29, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

sccg-management-signs-contract-with-british-columbia-lottery-corporation

SCCG Management has signed a contract with the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC), the B.C. Crown corporation which conducts and manages commercial gambling in the province, including lotteries, casinos, and online gaming. This partnership aims to undertake a comprehensive assessment and strategic enhancement of BCLC’s diverse operations.

The work between SCCG and BCLC will involve a thorough review of technological infrastructures, strategic market positioning, and the integration of various gaming modalities. SCCG’s extensive expertise will be pivotal in harmonizing BCLC’s online and physical gaming experiences.

Stephen Crystal, Founder and CEO of SCCG Management, said: “Our collaboration with BCLC represents a remarkable opportunity to push the boundaries of innovation within the gaming industry. We are committed to deploying our resources and expertise to enhance BCLC’s operational efficiencies and customer engagement strategies. It’s an honor to partner with an organization that has a robust impact on the community through its support of public initiatives.”

AGCO

AGCO Requires Ontario Gaming Operators to Stop Offering WBA Bets Due to Integrity Concerns

Published

2 weeks ago

April 22, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

agco-requires-ontario-gaming-operators-to-stop-offering-wba-bets-due-to-integrity-concerns

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has mandated all Ontario-registered sportsbook operators to halt offering and accepting wagers on World Boxing Association (WBA) events immediately. This measure is being taken to protect the Ontario betting public following concerns that WBA-sanctioned boxing matches are not adequately being safeguarded against match-fixing and insider betting.

Since December 2023, the AGCO has been conducting a comprehensive review of suspicious wagering activity on a WBA-sanctioned title fight between Yoenis Tellez and Livan Navarro that was held in Orlando, Florida. Suspicious betting patterns on the bout lasting over 5.5 rounds were reported to the AGCO by two registered independent integrity monitors and detected in Ontario by a registered igaming operator. Media reports also alleged that Tellez’s Manager placed $110,000 on the match lasting longer than 5.5 rounds at a Florida casino. The bout ended with Tellez knocking out Navarro in the 10th round.

Following an intensive review that included outreach to the WBA, Ontario-registered gaming operators, independent integrity monitors, and regulators in other jurisdictions, the AGCO has concluded that bets related to WBA events do not currently meet the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming.

The AGCO requires all Ontario-registered gaming operators to ensure the sport betting products they offer are on events that are effectively supervised by a sport governing body. At a minimum, the sport governing body must have and enforce codes of conduct that prohibit betting by insiders.

Registered gaming operators were unable to demonstrate to the AGCO that the WBA prohibits betting from insiders, which could include an athlete’s coaches, managers, handlers, athletic trainers, medical professionals, or others with access to non-public information. Further, registered gaming operators were unable to demonstrate that the WBA took any action to investigate or enforce the allegations of potential match-fixing and insider wagering.

The AGCO has indicated to registered operators that in order for WBA betting products to be reinstated in Ontario, operators must demonstrate that the WBA effectively supervises its events, thus bringing them into compliance with the Registrar’s Standards. In December 2022, the AGCO required gaming operators to stop offering bets on UFC events for similar issues related to insider betting safeguards. Within a month, UFC amended its policies and implemented new protocols that allowed the AGCO to reinstate betting on UFC events in the province.

“Ontarians who wish to bet on sporting events need to be confident that those events are fairly run, and that clear integrity safeguards are in place and enforced by an effective sport governing body. Knowing the popularity of boxing in Ontario, we look forward to reinstating betting on WBA events once appropriate safeguards against possible match-fixing and insider betting have been confirmed,” Dr. Karin Schnarr, Registrar and CEO of AGCO, said.