Betway and Bet365 among operators interested in NZ licence

• Featured
• 23. 06. 2025.
• Milos Antic

Several high-profile online casinos and sportsbooks have voiced their interest in acquiring iGaming licences in New Zealand—Betway, 888, and Bet365 chief among them.

The trio did it in response to the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), which has issued an open call for operators to express interest ahead of market regulation expected to kick in sometime next year.

New Zealand regulation landscape

The open call, as Trina Lowry, the Director of the Online Gambling Implementation Programme, sees it, should help create a fair playing field for all operators. The ensuing conversation will help legislators “understand what information would be most helpful as the process unfolds and understand their experience and needs.”

New Zealand is on a fast track to create a regulated environment for online gambling. The regulation will launch in 2026, with fifteen new operators expected to enter the market through an auction. Additionally, bucking the overall trend, the NZ government is likely to allow iGaming advertising from the outset.

Player safety first

For that reason or other, Lowry was quick to emphasise the importance of player protection when handing out licences in the future: “Regulating this sector will help protect consumers, minimise gambling harm and provide regulatory oversight of online casino gambling providers operating in New Zealand,” she said. Earlier this year, New Zealand’s minister for mental health Matt Doocey announced that the Government would set aside $81 million with the goal of mitigating gambling harm.

Be that as it may, the iGaming market in New Zealand is projected to be worth $500m upon launch. That’s still way short of the $1 billion believed to be generated yearly by the grey market, which will be targeted under new regulation.