In the UK, player protection and standards body eCOGRA is now under new ownership following a management buy-out led by chief executive Andrew Beveridge.
The organisation’s founding members, three major and competing online gambling groups, have agreed to the change. Moving forward, eCOGRA’s ownership structure will not include software or other service providers or operators to ensure its is a truly independent body.
The company’s Safe and Fair seal of accreditation has become a reliable indicator of operators’ commitment to high standards of commercial conduct, customer respect and fair gaming, and it is held by 150 websites belonging to some of the most successful companies in the industry.
Having established itself as a credible member of the industry since its launch in 2003, the founding members believe it is now appropriate that their ties be severed to allow eCOGRA to make its own way in the industry.
"The industry is maturing and eCOGRA must be part of that evolving process," Beveridge said this week. "The trend toward national or state regulatory regimes around the world is just one of the areas in which our professional services are increasingly in demand by companies and jurisdictions committed to ensuring that they are well prepared in all respects to meet the highest international standards.
"Going forward eCOGRA intends to become a major force in helping shape new gaming regulations, offering specialised advice and assistance to existing and emerging jurisdictions and be at the forefront of establishing industry standards."
In addition to Beveridge, the organisation will now be led by chairman Michael Hirst and directors Bill Henbrey, Bill Galston and Frank Catania.
