Virgin Bet joins the International Betting Integrity Association

Newly-launched operator Virgin Bet has joined the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA), becoming the first operator to do so since its relaunch in June.

Under the terms of its membership, Virgin Bet will provide data on its bettors to the IBIA’s monitoring and alert platform. In return, Virgin Bet will be able to access data from IBIA members, with the aim of identifying and stopping match fixing.

Fifty sports betting firms are currently signed up as members of the IBIA, including bet365, GVC Holdings, William Hill and Paddy Power Betfair. ESSA Sports Betting Integrity officially rebranded as the IBIA last month, as part of a wider initiative to expand its reach globally.

Simon Mizzi, marketing director at Virgin Bet, said membership of the IBIA was “the most effective way” of highlighting its commitment to protecting its customers and sporting events.

“We go into our new enterprise with the best possible business protection,” Mizzi added.

Parent company Gamesys launched the mobile-only Virgin Bet brand in June, utilising SBTech’s sportsbook APIs, with Gamesys developing its own proprietary front-end for the brand.

Fellow operator JPJ Group did not include Virgin Bet within its £490m deal to acquire Gamesys in June, citing the brands fledgling status as a factor. The remaining Gamesys brands which have not been acquired by JPJ effectively operate as a separate company.

Speaking about Virgin Bet’s decision to join the IBIA, IBIA secretary general Khalid Ali said he was delighted that one of its first acts since the launch in June was to join the IBIA.