Jared Beber, CEO of Sports Venture Holdings Inc., the parent company of Bet99, says the sportsbook company is close to obtaining the requisite approvals from Ontario to enter the province’s competitive sports betting market.
Beber told Covers, “We’re getting close, we’re not quite there.” He added, “I wouldn’t want to speak to a timeline, because ultimately that’s at the discretion of the regulators, but we are well through the process and very much so nearing the finish line.”
Since launching in 2020, Bet99 has become familiar to many Canadians through its free-to-play website and partnerships with athletes such as UFC champion Georges St-Pierre and NHL All-Star Auston Matthews. According to Beber, it has become “one of the largest online sport and casino betting websites that accept players from Canada.”
But it was licensed through the First Nation Kahnawake Gaming Commission, not a provincial authority. Now Bet99 has applied to operate under Ontario’s competitive market, which opened in April.
SVH and the online gaming company Kings Entertainment Group Inc. recently announced a planned merger, which is contingent on SVH obtaining a license from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario as an internet gaming operator.
The new company, most likely with Beber as CEO, will be rebranded as Interactive Entertainment Group Inc. Beber expects it to thrive in Canada.
“I recognize it’s a highly competitive market, but we do feel that we’ve made a large enough name,” Beber told Covers. “And we do feel that we’re approaching this market in a very unique way that we’re confident in our ability to execute, acquire, and most importantly, retain.”
