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Partnership strengthens integrity monitoring as Alberta’s regulated online gambling market opens |
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25 August 2026 - Pure Casino Entertainment Limited Partnership (Pure Casino), Alberta’s largest land-based casino operator and a newly licensed online gambling operator, has joined the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA), reinforcing its commitment to maintaining the highest standards of betting integrity following the launch of Alberta’s regulated online gambling market. The operator joins over 90 companies and more than 200 betting brands in IBIA that collectively monitor over US$300 billion in annual sports betting turnover across over 1.5 million sporting events per annum. Pure Casino operates seven casino properties across Alberta following the completion of its acquisition of Gamehost Inc. in June 2026, making it the province’s largest land-based casino operator with approximately one-third of Alberta’s retail casino market. It joins a growing network of Canadian licence holders working collaboratively within IBIA to identify suspicious betting activity and help protect both regulated betting markets and sporting competitions from corruption. The opening of Alberta’s competitive online gambling market marks a significant milestone for Canada’s regulated betting sector, with the province becoming only the second Canadian jurisdiction, after Ontario, to adopt an open licensing model for private operators. The new framework is designed to increase onshore channelisation to regulated gambling, strengthen consumer protections and support effective sports betting integrity safeguards. Both Ontario and Alberta require licensed online sports betting operators to have contractual arrangements with an Independent Integrity Monitor (IIM) approved by the provincial regulator. Those monitors must operate independently and be free from commercial conflicts of interest, ensuring the impartial identification and sharing of suspicious betting intelligence. Brad Belhouse, CEO, Pure Casino Entertainment, said: “Launching our online betting operations marks an important milestone for Pure Casino’s iGaming Platform offering in Alberta, and joining IBIA is a key part of our integrity and compliance framework. Working with IBIA, the leading betting integrity body serving Canada's regulated market, reflects our commitment to protecting customers, safeguarding sporting integrity and supporting a trusted, well-regulated betting environment.” Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA, said: “We are delighted to welcome Pure Casino to IBIA. As Alberta’s largest land-based casino operator, Pure Casino brings significant scale and expertise to our Canadian and global integrity monitoring network. Its membership reinforces the integrity framework underpinning Canada’s regulated sports betting market and highlights the value of embedding collaborative integrity monitoring from the outset of a new regulatory regime.” IBIA’s Q2 2026 Integrity Report highlights the association’s expanding work across the country, including a recent athlete betting integrity education initiative delivered with the Canadian Football League (CFL) and in partnership with Genius Sports, equipping CFL players with practical guidance on identifying betting-related integrity risks. The Q2 report also examines the continuing development of regulated betting in Ontario and Alberta, including channelisation trends and the benefits of betting activity migrating into regulated and independently monitored markets. |
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