Jeremy Locke, the new president of the North American Gaming Regulators Association (NAGRA), has spoken out over the need for greater collaboration with regulatory bodies in Europe, saying this will help tackle gambling-related issues across both continents.
Locke took on his new role at NAGRA in July, having served as vice president since 2024. He is also the chief operating officer of compliance for the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).
During the conference, Locke joined Jamie Wall, senior manager international regulatory partnerships at Britain’s Gambling Commission, for a special podcast. The session covered the link-up between NAGRA and the Gambling Commission and what benefits this offers to both organisations and the wider market.
“Over the past five or six years in North America, we have seen this explosive modernisation and evolution of the gambling sector,” Locke said. “Regulators across the continent have quickly identified that world has gotten smaller very quickly.”
Locke also pointed to growing interest in UK- and Europe-based events in betting markets across North America. He said linking up with the commission and other regulators across Europe would help improve integrity within the sector.
“We’re seeing events in the UK and rest of Europe that our markets in North America are betting on,” he said. “So, when we have those integrity alerts coming in, we all need to come together. The UK may have their integrity team looking at the same thing, but we can act far more efficiently and quickly if we’re co-ordinated in those efforts.”
As to why NAGRA elected to work with the commission, Locke said the association had been seeking partners that are “leaders in regulation”. Such relationships, he said, would help to evolve regulation in the fast-changing North American market.
NAGRA keen to share best practices
On this, Locke called for greater collaboration between European and North American regulators to better address shared concerns related to gambling.
While he ruled out the possibility of a “universally applied regulatory model” for regulators on both continents to follow, he said the greater the commonality between regulation, the easier it will be for both regulators and operators.
“What I’ve learnt through my involvement with NAGRA is there are so many small differences between each state that sometimes make it challenging to achieve a certain level of co-ordination,” he said
“We need to find a way for more seamless regulatory services in integrated markets. We should have high standards but make it easy for operators to understand what requirements are.”
Locke even spoke about the possibility of regulators and associations sharing models with each other. This, he said, would allow bodies to learn from those that have succeeded in tackling certain issues.
“The more we can do that, the more time it will save jurisdictions,” he said. “I don’t think there is any pride of ownership in any of these models. They are all keen to share and for other regulators to make it right for their own context.”
Jeremy Locke, who recently became president of NAGRA, said more co-operation is needed to support regulatory work.