The British Columbia Lottery Corporation has announced it has completed revamping a document known as the Operational Services Agreement (OSA). The document is basically a lawbook governing how casino and gambling operators at large are expected to act within the province.
The revision follows the ordeal in September when British Columbia Attorney General David Eby revealed evidence that a group of Chinese gamblers had been using a BC casino to launder money to the sum of millions of dollars.
Jim Lightbody, BCLC President and CEO, explained the process, saying, “The gambling market has evolved significantly since BCLC first took on the role of managing casinos in 1997. The new OSA sets the course for the long-term success of the industry in B.C. by working with service providers to create and commit to an investment plan and hold service providers accountable for those plans and for maintaining the security and integrity of gambling.”
The BCLC is of course in favor of gaming operators succeeding within the new ecosystem. The incentive given by the regulator to casinos and other operators that follow the new protocols is a 5% facility investment commission that will be tied to net winnings. The BCLC pointed out, however, that this incentive can be cancelled for operators who repeatedly fail to comply with the new regulations. (READ SO: VANCOUVER HAS BECOME A CENTER OF ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES?)
Part of the existing laws, the British Columbia Lottery Corporation emphasized that operators would continue to be obligated to a commission rate of 25% on slot net win amounts, as well as the 40% tariff placed on high-limit table games. For regular-limit table games, the amount will be set at 42.5%, and for poker it will rise to 77.5%. For bingo, operators will be required to commissions on weekly revenue after prizes have been paid. This will be set out as 90% on the first $10,000 and 45% on any amount over $10,000.
