Bet365 has received a key approval from an Ontario regulator that puts the global bookmaker in line to start legally taking bets in the province early next month.
The list of registered internet gaming operators maintained by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) shows "Hillside (International Sports) ENC" and "Hillside (International Gaming) ENC" were issued a registration certificate by the regulator on Tuesday.
According to recently released financial statements, both companies are 100% controlled by Stoke-on-Trent, England-based bet365 Group Ltd. The registration also appears to cover more than 20 bet365-branded mobile apps and sites for online sports betting, internet casino gambling, and poker, among other things.
Bet365's registration comes as Ontario is preparing to launch a competitive market for iGaming on April 4. Registering with the AGCO is an important step for companies that want to participate.
At least 30 operators are indeed interested in doing so. That's because the market will be the first of its kind for Canada — where legal sports betting and internet gambling are chiefly the domain of government-owned entities — and will allow private-sector operators of online sportsbooks and online casinos in Ontario to lawfully take wagers in the country's most populous province.
Bet365 is overseen by the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner and has a regulated presence in the United States. However, despite taking wagers in Ontario and perhaps being one of its bigger online bookmakers, the company is not regulated by provincial authorities.
Out of the grey
Ontario’s plan could change that. While government-owned Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. is currently the only legal provider of iGaming in the province, the plan for a competitive market has drawn interest from some of the biggest North American sportsbook operators, including BetMGM, DraftKings, and FanDuel.
So-called “grey market” operators are interested as well. Those companies are being offered the opportunity to legally do business in Ontario under the oversight of provincial authorities rather than the out-of-province or offshore jurisdictions where they may currently be regulated.
And Ontario’s “grey” area is pretty sizable. The provincial government has estimated its residents are spending almost $1 billion a year on online gambling and that an estimated 70% of that handle is being wagered at sites not supervised by Ontario authorities. Bet365 would likely account for at least some of that grey activity.
“Google Trends directionally suggests that bet365 is likely one of the largest players, if not the largest player, in terms of Ontario online sports betting market share,” noted a report released last year by research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, in association with The Parleh. “The privately held company has not said publicly whether it intends to apply for Ontario licensure.”
Bet365 has remained mum (at least publicly) about any Ontario plans it may have. Even so, its users have recently started being directed towards the company’s “new and exclusive app” for Canadian customers, an effort that has included offering $25 in free bet credits.
“This offer only runs until the start of April, after which time you will no longer be able to use our existing app,” bet365 said in an email.
Recently released financial results for bet365 Group show its business weathered the first full year of the COVID-19 pandemic pretty well. The company’s report for the year ended March 28, 2021, showed the company made a profit of approximately C$670 million, up from around C$200 million a year earlier.
The increase in profit came even as the amounts wagered on sports at the bookmaker fell by 13%, which the company said was offset by a year-over-year increase in its profit margin that was achieved amid falling staff costs and increased revenues from online casino games. Bet365 also owns the Stoke City Football Club.
"The Group will continue with its long-standing policy of pursuing licenses in regulated markets and, given its experience, believes it is well placed to benefit long-term in those countries where commercially viable regulation is adopted," the report stated.
A word of caution
Ontario has been working on a competitive iGaming market for years. Internet gaming operators that want to participate must register with the AGCO and sign an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario, a government agency and AGCO subsidiary.
Bet365’s AGCO registration increased the number of private-sector operators registered by the regulator to 14 as of Wednesday morning:
- Annexio Ltd.
- Coolbet
- FanDuel
- Fitzdares
- bet365
- LeoVegas
- WSOP
- PointsBet
- Rivalry
- Royal Panda
- BetRivers
- theScore
- Unibet
- 888
"Please note that registrations of Internet Gaming Operators are effective no earlier than April 4, 2022," the AGCO's online registry says. "Such registrations may also be subject to additional terms that could impact this effective date, which as a result may differ from what is displayed on iAGCO."
Ontario is aiming to allow grey-market operators to transition themselves and their customers into the new iGaming market without much disruption. Operators are also being warned not to continue operating in the province’s unregulated market once the regulated one goes live.
“We will be monitoring registrant compliance with the requirement that a) they cease unregulated market operations in Ontario and b) terminate any association they may have with any other company that operates an unregulated scheme in Ontario,” says the AGCO’s recently updated “Internet Gaming Go-Live Compliance Guide” for operators and suppliers.
