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The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) and Norway’s Industry Association for Online Gaming (NBO) recently inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). This agreement aims to foster a safe and efficient local licensing and regulatory system in Norway, with a focus on betting integrity. This move comes as Norway continues its monopoly on gambling, differing from the licensing model increasingly adopted in Europe, as seen in Sweden, Denmark, and Germany.

Carl Fredrik Stenstrøm, General Secretary of NBO, highlighted the inefficiency of Norway’s current gambling monopoly in protecting consumers and maintaining industry integrity. He emphasized the need for a comprehensive view and regulation of the gambling market to establish an effective framework.

“The partnership between NBO and IBIA ensures a concerted effort to address responsible practices and supporting initiatives aimed at minimizing the impact of gambling-related harm,” said Stenstrøm.

Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA, expressed support for the MoU with NBO. He underscored the challenges posed by Norway’s monopoly approach to betting, particularly the lack of licensing for regulated betting operators, which affects market oversight and consumer protection.

“IBIA welcomes the establishment of an MoU with the NBO. We will seek to support the NBO’s challenge of the continuation of a monopoly style approach to betting in Norway. The lack of licensing for responsible regulated betting operators in Norway hinders market oversight, consumer protection and the implementation of effective sports betting integrity provisions,” Ali stated.

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IBIA is renowned globally for its efforts to safeguard the integrity of betting and sports. It represents over 50 companies and 125 top sports betting brands, handling an annual betting turnover of over $137 billion, making it the world’s leading operator-run integrity monitoring body.

The organization’s Q3 2023 integrity report revealed 50 alerts, and its Q4 and annual report for 2023 are expected shortly. In 2022, IBIA reported 268 alerts to authorities, leading to sanctions against 15 teams, officials, or players for suspicious activities in their matches.