Canada’s Foray into iGaming Reaping Significant Income for Provinces

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Last Updated On 27 November 2024, 2:51 AM EST (Toronto Time)

In North America, the iGaming industry is relatively new. It’s been building up in other markets around the world for a couple of decades, particularly in Europe, so when certain states and provinces in the United States and Canada opened up, the big brands were ready to throw in battle-tested platforms and elements proven to be popular with other audiences.

Sports betting was the big name on the ticket for most when the US started to become an open market in the middle of 2018, while online casino gaming became a bit less widespread. In Canada, however, where iGaming goes, it tends to be the full offering, from betting on the day’s big game to spinning the most popular slot games in the world.

Now, the provinces of Canada that have opened up to iGaming are seeing their coffers start to fill up. With most parlaying gaming tax revenue into community projects, certain Canadian provinces seem to have worked out a winning formula for the popular entertainment sector.

In each regulated zone for iGaming in Canada, the province has established a governing body to keep standards high and to report how revenues are being used. For the BCLC, British Columbia’s overseer of all things gambling, it’s been a very successful year.

Under the BCLC, $1.5 billion in net income has been generated for the province. Of that income, $140 million has gone to community gaming grants, $147.3 million has been given to the Provincial Health Special Account, and $1 billion has gone to fund public programs, as is detailed here.

Over in Ontario, gaming revenue in the 2023/24 accounting year amounted to $1.8 billion from online casino games alone, followed by $588 million from betting and $67 million from poker. It marks a 70 percent surge in activity the year prior, and all while iGaming Ontario is charging a 20 percent tax rate on online gambling.

Canada’s Foray into iGaming Reaping Significant Income for Provinces

Naturally, casino games have proven popular enough to be around for centuries. From the first modern roulette table being spun in France to the modern Megaways video slot, the games have always been popular. Yet, there’s still a lot of nuance that goes into creating a functional and popular iGaming scene today.

What has always been seen to be a benefit is competition. With enough verified brands competing at once, players not only get more options, but generally, those brands need to find new and better ways to appeal to them. This is most evident when going on a visit to the bonus rank and review sites.

Here, all of the bonuses available in Canada are stacked by how the industry experts rate the platforms and the welcome bonuses. With additional tabs for the best payouts and no-deposit bonuses, there isn’t anywhere for the brands to hide. If they want to get more players on these popular go-to sites, they need to improve.

Particularly in Ontario, the regulatory bodies have successfully created appealing iGaming industries that not only deliver entertainment to responsible Canadian players, but also pay plenty back to the province through their taxes.