PrizePicks has gained an entry in New York at a time of heightened scrutiny on alternative forms of gaming such as fantasy sports, prediction markets, and sweepstakes.
Yet, the company remains confident that a license in the Empire State would help it not only weather temporary regulatory upheaval but also ensure the longevity and sustainability of its business.
Awarded by the state’s gaming regulator, the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC), PrizePicks’ operational license comes a year after the NYSGC and the company settled a year ago. PrizePicks is now licensed in 16 states across the US.
The American Gaming Association (AGA) and other gambling industry dignitaries gathered at the recently concluded Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada, and discussed the advancement of prediction markets, with the trade group rallying the industry to oppose this new vertical and criticize its practices.
AGA CEO Bill Miller has argued that prediction platforms are using roundabout ways to dodge gambling regulation and influence the market.
"The AGA and our members are mobilizing across every battlefield. They’re threatening the communities we serve, the customers and consumers we protect, and the standards we uphold," Miller argued in a critical address to delegates. His remarks come at a time of heightened investor activity, which saw both Kalshi and Polymarket benefit from large investments.
Business and finance
Kalshi has become the latest prediction market platform to secure a significant investment, with a $300-million Series D funding round now pushing the company’s valuation to $5 billion, halfway to the estimated value of competitor Polymarket.
The company will use these funds to spearhead international growth as well as continue to expand its clout in the United States. Kalshi said at the time of closing the funding round that it is now available in 140 countries worldwide.
As the race for a new casino license in downtown New York intensifies, MGM Resorts has bowed out of the race. On Tuesday, the company confirmed that its subsidiary, MGM Yonkers Inc., withdrew its commercial casino license application submitted with the New York Gaming Commission and the Gaming Facility Location Board.
MGM Resorts recognized the decision to exit the commercial casino race as difficult.
However, the company explained in a statement: "Since submitting our application in June, the competitive and economic assumptions underpinning our application have shifted, altering our return expectations on the proposed $2.3bn investment."
In the meantime, revenue for BetMGM grew to $667m in Q3, a 23% increase on an annualized basis. Online casino revenue hit $454m, an increase of 21%, followed by sports betting, which shot up 36% compared to Q3 2024, for a total of $202m.
The only revenue decline registered by BetMGM was the retail sector, which shrank by an eye-watering 47%, with revenue at $11m. This is not surprising given the more challenging tourist sector right now.
BetMGM also recorded strong growth in the number of Average Monthly Active players, which increased by 6% year-over-year during Q3 this year.
In the United Kingdom, a looming tax hike on the gambling industry has prompted several major companies to announce preemptive closures of dozens, and in some cases hundreds of betting shops.
Evoke, a gambling major in the UK, will be winding down activity at 200 shops and potentially affect 1,500 jobs in the process. Paddy Power, another prominent company, has confirmed as well that as many as 57 of its shops will also be closing.
Laws and regulations
The Curaçao Gaming Authority is experiencing a rough patch, with the regulator’s Supervisory Board stepping en masse in mid-September, leaving the future of the iGaming industry in the jurisdiction looking shaky.
Now, new rumors have surfaced that Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas has stepped in to supervise the board while the hunt for new qualified professionals continues.
The exact reason for the commissioners' Shelwyn Salesia, Robert Reijnaert, and Ildefons Simon’s resignations remains unclear, but media reports have speculated that there has been dissatisfaction with certain members of government over the jurisdiction’s future as a licensing destination for the gambling industry.
Austria could be looking at a license-based model for its online casinos before long, ending the monopoly of Casinos Austria AG in the process.
According to the Austrian Association for Betting and Gambling, a trade group, the ruling parties may agree by year’s end to initiate a process that will mark the shift from a monopoly-based model to a more liberal market.
Responsible gambling
In the Netherlands, the share of the unlicensed gambling market inched up slightly as per the Dutch Gambling Authority’s latest report published earlier in the week. This comes following a new set of rules designed to strengthen player safety.
While channelization remains 94%, around 51% of the total gambling spend is now channeled through offshore and unlicensed operators, the regulator cautioned in its report, a slight increase from the regulator’s previous report.
BetBlocker has officially teamed up with MGM Resorts International in a bid to strengthen consumer safeguards. "This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to making safer gambling tools accessible, visible, and stigma-free, ensuring that help is always within reach," said BetBlocker Chief of Safer Gambling Partnerships Pedro Romero.
The voice of the industry
In this week’s round of interviews, Mike de Graaff, Chief Compliance Officer at BetComply, sat down with Casino Guru News to discuss the current state of iGaming regulation.
While he acknowledges the good intentions behind most regulatory efforts, de Graaff argues that there’s often a mismatch between what regulators aim to achieve and what their policies actually deliver.
He outlines the key do’s and don’ts of effective regulation, cautioning that every regulator tries to "reinvent the wheel" — but, as he puts it, that’s simply not possible. Find out more about this here.
