New Zealand's Parliament recently passed an amendment to the "2020 Racing Industry Act," officially granting TAB NZ exclusive rights to operate online sports and racing betting in the country. This transformative move will further solidify TAB's position as the only legal online betting platform in the nation, providing institutional support for the local betting ecosystem.
Currently, TAB controls about 90% of New Zealand's racing betting revenue. The amendment not only extends its terrestrial monopoly power online but also grants it additional regulatory compliance duties, including enhanced monitoring of user behavior and disclosure of performance data. The government plans to enact the law later this month.
Racing Minister Winston Peters stated that racing holds a pivotal place in New Zealand's culture and economy, contributing approximately 1.9 billion New Zealand dollars annually and providing over 13,000 jobs. This reform aims to ensure that betting revenues no longer flow to the overseas grey market but instead support local industry development. MP Steve Abel estimated that unregulated foreign platforms cause a loss of about 185 million New Zealand dollars annually.
Although the amendment experienced delays during the committee review stage, it ultimately received support from six political parties and passed. The revisions also include temporarily designating the Department of Internal Affairs as the regulatory body and authorizing it to oversee "harm minimization" measures in TAB's online operations, with this function to be transferred to a specialized iGaming regulatory body in the future.
Meanwhile, TAB's partner Entain has committed to investing an additional 100 million New Zealand dollars following the amendment to support the development of the racing industry. Entain and TAB signed a 25-year strategic cooperation agreement in 2023, involving betting, media broadcasting, and capital support.
The New Zealand government has revealed that it is developing a legal framework to open up the electronic betting market, expecting to issue no more than 15 online betting licenses from 2026, promoting an industry transformation from monopoly to orderly competition.
