Rui Proença and Ben Haden
As more markets open to betting, regulators face mounting pressure from illegal gambling, rapid technological change, and shortages of skilled personnel, Ben Haden, president of the International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR), said last week at G2E Asia.
The morning session, held on the final day of the conference, featured Haden alongside Rui Proença, managing partner at MdME. In a fireside chat, the pair discussed how regulatory oversight is adapting to new risks while balancing innovation with consumer protection.
“It’s an interesting time if you’re a regulator, because there are more jurisdictions coming online all the time,” Haden said. Despite this growth in online markets, the IAGR president stressed that “keeping the vulnerable safe, keeping the games fair, keeping crime out of gambling” remains central to IAGR’s mission.
However, a key concern raised by Haden was the issue of attracting and retaining talent.
As technology evolves, Haden notes, securing the right expertise is “as hard as ever.”
“Over the last couple of years, one of the themes that has always been the same is how you attract the right talent to work within the regulatory community, and that it is difficult,” he said.
“I hear it from the commercial community, in terms of how they attract the best talent to their business, and the same is true of the regulatory community,” he said. “It’s something that is clearly shared.”
Technology and illegal markets
Against a backdrop where technological change accelerates both opportunity and risk, regardless of industry, Haden said, “Technology will enable bad actors to access consumers, and it will enable consumers who either consciously or often, from our research, unconsciously access them, to be able to access the illegal market,” he said. Comparing its reach to water, Haden added that technology is “like water – it will find a way.”
“As a jurisdiction […] you have a choice as to how you want to approach that,” he said, noting that most regulators acknowledge illegal markets exist but aim to manage them within broader frameworks. “We recognize it’s there; we will regulate it […] but it’s an individual choice.”
Meanwhile, the scale of this very issue is particularly acute in Asia. Proença cited estimates placing illegal gaming revenue in the region at more than $100 billion annually during the discussion.
“I know it’s very hard to calculate, but I think it’s an idea of the scale of the problem that we’re facing here,” Proença said, noting that online casino gaming remains prohibited in most jurisdictions outside the Philippines.
While some in the industry advocate wider legalization as a solution, Haden cautioned against oversimplification.
“It’s always a bit more complex than that, isn’t it?” he said, advising regulators to focus on disruption rather than elimination. “Anyone who ever tells you their aim is to eradicate illegal gambling, I probably wouldn’t have that long a conversation with, because you’ll never get rid of it,” he said.
Data, innovation and cooperation
Looking forward, Haden projected broader participation across the digital ecosystem, including social media platforms and payment providers, which he described as having been relatively “passive” to date. At the same time, he pointed to the growing role of data and artificial intelligence in strengthening oversight. “We want to understand and use data that enables us to appreciate the risk of non-compliance […] and how do we target our resource as a result in an efficient and effective way,” Haden said.
Using the U.K. as an example, he noted that regulators are combining consumer surveys, operator data, and open banking information to build a clearer picture of gambling behavior. “It starts to become very powerful […] but the trick is how you meld those together,” he said.
Haden also suggested that pressure from illegal markets may drive more meaningful innovation across the sector.
However, he stressed that no single authority can address these challenges alone.
“It’s not a challenge that any one organization can deal with on its own,” he said, highlighting the need for stronger international cooperation.
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