The regulated private market for online betting and gaming in Ontario is estimated to bring in about $75 million in income for the provincial government over the next three years, according to a study by the Ontario Auditor General, an independent officer of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to aid accountability by conducting independent audits of Ontario provincial government operations.
The Auditor General is appointed by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario (formerly by the Governor in Council) for a 10-year term. For now, Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk holds the office. Her most recent financial evaluation reportedly included a breakdown of the anticipated net profits of iGaming Ontario, the organization in charge of carrying out business deals and managing the sector.
According to the paper, financial forecasts show that online gambling in Ontario is predicted to generate a net profit of $18 million for the fiscal year 2022–2023, followed by $26 million for the years 2023–2024 and $31 million for the years 2024–2025, for a three-year total of $75 million.
The report said that the total is changeable since it was impossible to judge if the estimates were acceptable given the absence of prior experience in this field. In addition to the $75 million forecast, a minor amount of sales tax revenue is anticipated to be gained by iGaming-related expenses.
Bringing gambling earnings from overseas and formerly gray market websites into regulated channels is one of the main goals of Ontario’s new market. It is recognized that till the fourth of April 2022, Ontario citizens have spent over $700 million annually on grey-market websites.
How much overall income private iGaming companies are anticipated to produce in Ontario is not included in the auditor general’s report. Whatever the final figure turns out to be, the province’s declared tax rate is 20% of income for businesses operating in the brand-new iGaming sector. Additionally, iGaming Ontario states that it will reveal its method for disclosing income at a later date.
The number of operators that have entered the regulated market and the degree of iGaming activity so far is encouraging to iGO. The organization is always analyzing and updating any projections provided before launch given the recent market debut and the anticipated growth as additional operators go live.