Canada

Legal Sports Betting Reaches New Heights: Signals Lean Times Ahead for Illegal Bookies

Published

5 years ago

September 13, 2021

Tens of millions of Americans now have the choice to bet legally with state-approved and regulated sportsbooks this NFL season.

In what can only be a sign of dismal days to come for the illegal market, data compiled by GeoComply Solutions Inc. reveals that in just one year, legal online sports betting volumes have more than doubled from last year.

The combination of new sports betting states and American consumers migrating to legal sportsbooks has resulted in the highest four day stretch of geolocation transactions ever recorded by GeoComply (whose compliance services are used to support nearly 100% of the US online sports betting market).

“Preparing for this NFL season has been a process that began before the end of last season, and we expected high volumes, but what we have seen has surprised us nonetheless,” said Lindsay Slader, Managing Director of Gaming for GeoComply. “The level of demand across new markets, such as Arizona, indicates that consumers have long waited for the option to legally place a sports bet.”

“The data tells a remarkable story about the growth of the industry in a short period of time. This success is a credit to all our clients and state regulators, who have worked tirelessly to prepare for the start of the new NFL season.”

According to the data collected and analyzed by GeoComply, there were 58.2 million geolocation transactions across 18 states and the District of Columbia, from Thursday, September 9th through 7 PM ET on Sunday, September 12th. This represents a 126% increase from the same period of the 2020 NFL season when GeoComply processed 25.8 million transactions.

The data also reveals that the states with the highest volume of transactions were:

New Jersey
Pennsylvania
Michigan
Arizona
Illinois

Arizona, which launched on the first day of the NFL season, has seen more than 6.1 million geolocation transactions from more than 271,000 newly-created accounts since Thursday, when the state-regulated sportsbooks first went live.

“Arizona is showing that there is pent up demand for sports betting in the western part of the U.S. The state has catapulted near the top as the 4th largest state for transactions, in just its first weekend. We haven’t seen anything quite like it,” Slader added.

“I am immensely proud of the GeoComply team who has put in thousands of hours to ensure a seamless and most importantly, safe start to the NFL season. Whether it’s confirming location, verifying identities or detecting and thwarting possible fraud, our geolocation compliance and security solutions are committed to support the regulated online gaming environment,” Slader concluded.

GeoComply plans to release its data periodically throughout the 2021/2022 sports calendar to help inform insight and discussions about the U.S. sports betting industry.

Canada

St8 expands Octoplay aggregation deal to Ontario and the UK

Published

2 days ago

July 2, 2026

Wladimir P.

st8-expands-octoplay-aggregation-deal-to-ontario-and-the-uk

St8 has extended its content partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK, expanding distribution of Octoplay’s casino games in two regulated markets. The companies announced the move on 2 July, 2026.

Under the expanded agreement, St8 will make Octoplay’s full portfolio available to operators in both jurisdictions through St8’s single API integration.

David Fall, Business Development Manager at St8, said:

“Expanding our partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK is another important milestone as we continue to strengthen our aggregation platform with premium content from leading suppliers.

“Octoplay has built an excellent reputation for developing engaging, high-performing games, and we’re delighted to extend this collaboration into two highly strategic regulated markets. This agreement enables our operator partners to access even more quality content through a single integration while supporting their growth in competitive jurisdictions.”

Ralitsa Georgieva, CEO at Octoplay added:

“We’re pleased to expand our partnership with St8 into Ontario and the UK, making our full portfolio available to even more operators through its aggregation platform. St8 has established itself as a trusted technology partner for regulated markets, and we look forward to building on our successful collaboration together.”

The post St8 expands Octoplay aggregation deal to Ontario and the UK appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Canada

St8 extends Octoplay partnership into Ontario and the UK

Published

2 days ago

July 2, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

st8-extends-octoplay-partnership-into-ontario-and-the-uk

Casino games aggregator and full-service technology provider St8 has expanded its partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK, further strengthening its premium content offering across two of the industry’s most important regulated markets.

Through the extended agreement, St8 will make Octoplay’s full portfolio of casino games available to operators in both jurisdictions, providing partners with seamless access to the supplier’s high-quality content through its single API integration.

The expansion builds on the successful relationship between the two companies and reflects St8’s continued commitment to providing operators with access to leading game providers across regulated markets. By broadening the availability of Octoplay’s portfolio, St8 further enhances the depth and diversity of content available to its operator network.

Octoplay has quickly established itself as one of the industry’s most innovative and fastest growing game studios, recognised for delivering engaging titles that combine premium gameplay with strong player appeal which are now available across 17 jurisdictions. The supplier’s focus on quality and performance aligns closely with St8’s mission to simplify content aggregation while helping operators deliver exceptional gaming experiences.

The latest agreement reinforces St8’s strategy of expanding its premium content portfolio while helping operators simplify integration, accelerate market entry and deliver engaging gaming experiences across multiple regulated jurisdictions.

David Fall, Business Development Manager at St8, said: “Expanding our partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK is another important milestone as we continue to strengthen our aggregation platform with premium content from leading suppliers.

Ralitsa Georgieva, CEO at Octoplay added: “We’re pleased to expand our partnership with St8 into Ontario and the UK, making our full portfolio available to even more operators through its aggregation platform. St8 has established itself as a trusted technology partner for regulated markets, and we look forward to building on our successful collaboration together.”

The post St8 extends Octoplay partnership into Ontario and the UK appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

AGCO

AGCO Fines Great Canadian Entertainment $120,000 for Using Unauthorised Gaming System Software at Four Casinos

Published

2 days ago

July 2, 2026

Wladimir P.

agco-fines-great-canadian-entertainment-$120,000-for-using-unauthorised-gaming-system-software-at-four-casinos

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has ordered monetary penalties totalling $120,000 against Great Canadian Entertainment (GCE) for using unauthorided gaming system software at multiple Ontario casino sites, a serious compliance failure that bypassed requirements designed to protect the integrity of casino gaming.

Gaming equipment and systems are central to casino operations. They process payments and wagers, support slot-game play and help maintain controls that protect the integrity, safety and security of the gaming environment. When these systems are used or operated without required testing, monitoring and approval, it weakens safeguards designed to detect and prevent unlawful conduct, including money laundering, and can undermine public confidence in Ontario’s regulated casino sector.

The AGCO reviewed 40 instances in which revoked or unapproved bill validator software had been installed across four casino sites between February 20 and March 15, 2025. Bill validators are components within gaming machines that accept and process cash and help support anti-money laundering controls.

The AGCO’s Standards for Gaming require gaming equipment and software to be tested and approved before being deployed in casinos. Bill validators verify the authenticity and value of cash inserted into electronic gaming machines and are an important safeguard. That is why these systems must undergo rigorous testing and approval to confirm they operate as intended, perform critical functions reliably and are authorised before being introduced into a live casino environment.

Casino operators are responsible for ensuring that changes to gaming systems are properly reviewed, tested and authorised before implementation. Using unapproved software in a live casino environment is a serious compliance failure.

A casino operator served with an Order of Monetary Penalty has the right to appeal the Registrar’s action within 15 days to the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT), an adjudicative body that is part of Tribunals Ontario and independent of the AGCO.

“The AGCO requires casino operators to protect the integrity of their gaming systems by making sure they are independently tested, approved and operating as intended. When unauthorised software is used in a live casino environment, it bypasses critical safeguards that are meant to uphold the integrity of gaming and the public’s confidence in the system. The AGCO will continue to hold all casino operators accountable for meeting Ontario’s high standards of gaming system integrity,” said Dr. Karin Schnarr, Registrar and Chief Executive Officer at AGCO.

The post AGCO Fines Great Canadian Entertainment $120,000 for Using Unauthorised Gaming System Software at Four Casinos appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.