Infront has become an Associate Member of the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA), the largest customer account betting integrity monitoring body for private operators in the world. The agreement underlines Infront’s commitment to betting integrity, information sharing and cooperation and sees them align with over 50 companies and 125 leading sports betting brands in IBIA.

The partnership comes as Infront’s betting portfolio and client base continues to grow. From 2025 Infront is set to deliver over 70,000 annual events to their global growing client base. This will include the data partnership Infront has announced with the ITF.

The addition of a robust data delivery platform will also provide bookmakers with a low latency data product. This makes it vital to develop the unit’s integrity services and functions for more than 40 rightsholders.

Chris Catling, Head of Infront Bettor, said: “By becoming part of this esteemed global network we gain valuable intelligence, enabling us to detect and address suspicious betting patterns swiftly and effectively. This partnership strengthens our compliance and offers a unique opportunity to collaborate with key stakeholders worldwide on policy development to help shape a safer, fairer and more sustainable future for the betting industry. As a relatively new business in this space, aligning with an organisation of IBIA’s credibility is crucial for demonstrating our commitment to transparency and integrity, one of the core values of Infront.”

Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA, said: “I am delighted to welcome another major player in the sports betting ecosystem as a member of IBIA. Infront is a globally recognised organisation that will deliver a significant amount of tennis product to the betting industry from 2025. Infront and IBIA are committed to working together to ensure the highest levels of integrity for that product and to protecting all sports from for betting-related corruption.”

Membership provides access to IBIA’s global monitoring network to help identify and address suspicious betting activity, as well as compliance guidance on evolving regulations across jurisdictions. It also allows Infront to work closely with regulators, sports organisations and other operators, fostering greater industry cooperation. IBIA’s partnerships with leading sports federations like FIFA, UEFA and the IOC will enhance joint efforts to combat corruption.

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 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 global monitoring network it is possible to track transactional activities linked to individual customer accounts. IBIA members have over $300bn per annum in 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.

Hold on to your crypto hats, folks, because this party is about to get regulated! Spinning wheels and lucky sevens, anonymous transactions basically, all that has gone into making the crypto casino industry a booming one. It now draws regulators’ attention worldwide. Though many of you may view this as a killjoy, it’s centrally relevant to understand the potential impact and why this is happening in the first place.

Imagine this: you are on a hot streak at your favorite crypto roulette table, one lucky spin after another. Suddenly, a message appears: “Error: Transactions exceeding X amount require KYC verification.” Talk about a mood killer! Before you hurry to buy a pack of tinfoil hats, let’s look into the reasons behind this potential regulatory crackdown.

The Dark Side of the Crypto Coin

It’s a Catch-22 situation: while anonymity gives room for discreet transactions, it is also an expressway to all sorts of wrongdoing. This poses a great concern for regulators seeking to keep the online gambling space clean.

Now, across the Atlantic, France’s gambling watchdog raised red flags against two rather popular crypto casino platforms in 2021: cbet.gg and stake.com. What was their crime? Allowing transactions with those oh-so-convenient crypto coins. The French authorities said it runs against AML (anti-money laundering) regulations. Similarly, while Spain fails to regulate means of gambling payments as such, it has precisely forbidden crypto as a valid means.

The Great Crypto Gambling License Fiasco

You might be wondering at this point, “But wait, they have licenses!” And that is where it gets thick. Many crypto casinos proudly display their licenses, but then a closer look at things reveals a spidery web of regulatory loopholes.

Curaçao—fast, cheap, and hence a go-to choice for most crypto gambling sites. Sounds good? Not quite. Critics argue this license is essentially a “participation trophy.”  The Curaçao regulatory body doesn’t exactly hold licensees by the hand. They rarely conduct audits or enforce regulations, leaving operators to pretty much do their own thing.

Malta used to be the star child of crypto gambling licenses, boasting appealing tax breaks and access to European markets. However, recent scandals have Malta somewhat tarnished. Allegations of lax AML procedures and possible ties to organized crime cast a dark shadow over what once was the prestigious Maltese license.

Then there is the case of Costa Rica. And wait, there is no gambling license here! Many times, what is shown is a glorified registration of the company, costing around $10,000. This means that they have an “office” in the country, but there is no regulatory body that will hold them accountable. It’s a casino operator’s dream, or nightmare (depending on how one views it).

The Four Horsemen of Crypto-powered Shenanigans

Now, how exactly are cryptocurrencies being used for nefarious activity in online gambling? The grim report from the Asian Racing Federation (ARF) has outlined four key areas about it:

• Goodbye Fiat: Cryptocurrencies are making for an alternative to traditional means and methods of payments; in effect, this makes it difficult for authorities to track transactions and identify suspicious activity.
• Blockchain Bonanza: Some gambling apps are based on blockchain technology, thereby further obscuring the transactions and creating a whole new layer of complexity for regulators.
• Agent Provocateur: Crypto facilitates the transfer of funds to betting agents outside the regulator’s framework. This allows them to bypass AML and consumer protection measures.
• Wash, Rinse, Repeat: It’s no wonder that anonymity in cryptocurrency makes it tailor-made for laundering profits from illegal gambling operations. Money can be rushed around quickly and is anonymous, making it next to impossible for any authority to track money flows.

The Potential Impact of Increased Regulatory Scrutiny

What does this regulatory crackdown mean for the future of crypto casinos? Well, let’s break it down.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

On one hand, increased regulation might boost player trust and confidence. Knowing that your darling crypto casino runs within a tight framework of laws and regulations tends to build trust. This gives the players a feeling of security and fairness and will, therefore, help attract more players into the fold. Further, it will weed out rogue operators who are more interested in lining their pockets than in providing a safe environment to play in.

The road to regulation, however, remains bumpy. Tighter regulations augment the cost of compliance for operators. With their price hikes, this can be transferred to players in higher fees, or worse, some casinos may opt to fold up and leave the market altogether.

Furthermore, by their very nature, cryptocurrencies are anonymous. If regulations require casinos to obtain more personal identifying information from their players, some players might be turned off by that loss of privacy. This can direct players to unregulated platforms where risks are higher.

The Future is a Gamble

At one end is the future of crypto casinos, while at another corner are innovative operators battling it out with watchful regulators in a game of cat and mouse. As the industry matures, we could witness the wedding of benefits accruable from blockchain technology with those safeguards ushered in by traditional regulation in a hybrid model.

For players, doing your homework is critical. Look for a casino that has won some reputable licenses and has a reputation for fair play. Remember not to take any risk, however irresistible, on an unregulated platform. At the end of the day, it’s not worth the risk. There are enough good crypto casinos to choose from.

Conclusion

The key to survival lies in adaptation, and the industry itself will survive if crypto casinos can effectively navigate a regulatory turf while maintaining their innovative edge. It’s high time the industry rolled up its sleeves to show it can be responsible and trustworthy in the global gaming market.

Although it is a gamble, careful planning, and responsible practices might just be what crypto casinos need to make it big in the future.

GamProtect, the initiative that is the combined brainchild of the BGC, ICO, GC and gambling operators, has now moved from the ‘sandbox’ stage to the implementation stage, and has caused a great deal of interest in the sector.

While creating a ‘single-customer view’ shared amongst operators will help to protect the most vulnerable customers, there have also been concerns that it may be viewed by customers as an invasion of privacy or used by operators for commercial purposes.

That’s where the ICO’s buy-in is important: GDPR concerns have been taken into account when crafting the initiative and deciding which information to share, when and with whom.

Some of the largest operators in the sector have been participating in GamProtect since April 2023, including Flutter, Entain, bet365 and William Hill – with the programme officially opened to all operators last week.

One interesting point to note is the suggestion that introducing the single-customer view, with operators taking the lead, will have the tangential benefit to the industry of helping reduce the need for further mandated player protection legislation.

Whether this is true remains to be seen.

How does GamProtect work?

Under the scheme, participating operators will identify a player as being at risk if the customer themself states they meet one of five triggers:

• that they have a gambling addiction,

• they are seeking support or treatment for addiction,

• they might harm themselves and/or others,

• they should not be gambling due to a health condition or

• they want to stop gambling due to gambling addiction.

Following an interaction with the customer, an operator will share the customer’s name, date of birth, postcode, email address, telephone number and the reason for the flag with GamProtect, allowing other operators to check if the same customer has an account with them and to close it if necessary.

According to the Gambling Commission, GamProtect has already identified 5,527 consumers to date, with the goal of helping to protect them from risk and serious harm. Of these consumers, 88 per cent were matched by at least one operator, and 66 per cent by at least two.

Now the initiative is open to more operators, it will be interesting to see its efficacy and what public perception of it is.