IMGL 2025: Why the global gaming industry is watching Vancouver

This week, a global roster of top gaming lawyers, regulators, founders, and investors will descend on Vancouver for the IMGL 2025 Spring Conference. The event marks the return of the International Masters of Gaming Law (IMGL) to Canada for the first time in nearly two decades — and it’s more than just a legal affair.

Held in partnership with the International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR), the conference is a twice-yearly gathering of the world’s leading minds in gaming and betting law. "We have members from all continents, probably represented in 100 different countries," explained Ron Segev, founding partner of Segev LLP and chair of this year's conference.

Segev describes IMGL as "an association of the top gaming and betting lawyers in the world," with a mission to support clients, educate regulators, and develop best practices for a highly regulated and rapidly evolving industry. Beyond the policy considerations, gaming is also big business, he says. For example, Ontario’s regulated iGaming market, launched just three years ago, now generates more than $2.4 billion in annual revenue. And companies like DraftKings, BetMGM, and Canada’s own theScore (acquired by Penn Entertainment for $2 billion) underscore the sector's rapid growth and scale.

A Vancouver story

Hosting the conference in Vancouver is more than a logistical decision. According to Segev, the city has long played an outsized role in the global gaming industry — even if few locals realize it.

"There's quite a few gaming companies in Vancouver, and people don't know about it," he said. "Mostly these are software development shops, and, you know, largely acting under the radar." 

He points to companies like Churchill Downs' TwinSpires, Bally’s, PokerStars, and Full Tilt Poker, all of which have had offices in Vancouver over the years.

That includes local success stories like BlueBat Games, which exited to Austrian gaming giant Novomatic. Its founder, Kenny Huang, is now building a new company called Tiny Rex Games — and will be among the speakers at IMGL.

Another Vancouver-born company, GeoComply, has become an industry leader in geolocation compliance and fraud prevention. It recently acquired OneComply, a firm co-founded by Aaron Gould and Cameron Conn. Lindsay Slader, GeoComply’s senior vice president of compliance, will be speaking at the event.

"We have the ability to show off the best of Vancouver, not just the tourist sites... but also some of our tech companies, some of our capital markets people," said Segev. “And inviting some of our First Nations to come and speak, work, and share their stories."

Showcasing local innovation

Several speakers at the event represent the next generation of B.C.-based gaming innovation. Snap Call Media, a lesser-known but fast-growing company in the affiliate marketing space, is one of Segev's personal favourites.

"Matt Showell and Alex Konyves had, years ago, spotted a shift in how people were consuming content on the internet... Before 'influencer' was a word, they realized that influencers were very busy influencing, and so they've created an influencer platform that basically gives influencers tools to become affiliates."

Snap Call will be featured on a martech panel alongside other marketing tech companies helping to drive customer acquisition and retention in the gaming space.

The conference will also highlight efforts by Indigenous leaders to enter and reshape the industry. Sonco Gaming, for example, works with First Nations across the country to establish both land-based and online operations. The Songhees First Nation, based on Vancouver Island, recently acquired two casinos from Great Canadian Gaming and is "aggressively entering the space," said Segev.

Smart money and founders

The business of gaming — and the regulatory hurdles it must navigate — are front and centre throughout the conference. One session, titled Smart Money, Smart Founders, will examine how founders and investors align (or don’t) in this complex industry.

The panel will feature Segev, as well as Jesse Learmonth, Victoria-based founder of Betting Startups; Joel Simkins, a New York-based investor with XST Capital Group; and Jeff Ifrah of Ifrah PLLC.

"Jesse's a great resource, because he works with founders from all over the world. He was a successful founder that exited and he's now building this new company," said Segev. "And Joel... invested in one of the huge success stories in the Ontario market."

The session aims to surface insights into how venture capital approaches a market as regulated and fast-evolving as gaming.

Canada: An emerging powerhouse

From tax credits to time zones, Canada’s advantages as a base for gaming companies are increasingly compelling. “If you're doing [sports betting] in Vancouver or Toronto... people here will follow March Madness or college football. They just get it here,” said Segev. "We're in the same time zone. We're a two-hour flight from Vegas."

Add in skilled talent, accessible immigration policy, and proximity to the U.S., and it’s no surprise that global companies are looking north.

"It's much easier to bring in skilled workers to Canada than it is in the US, certainly in today's climate. And so people are coming here and not just talking about accessing our market, but also about building teams and companies."

Why it matters

Despite Vancouver's legacy and talent in the sector, Segev notes that the city still lacks the regulatory infrastructure to fully support gaming and betting companies out in the open. Many industry veterans have had to relocate their operations to jurisdictions like Malta or London.

Still, the IMGL conference presents a rare moment to shed light on the people and companies who have kept building here — and perhaps to spark new conversations.

"We're going to talk a little bit about that too," said Segev, referring to the need for a more open, better-supported gaming ecosystem in B.C.

If nothing else, IMGL 2025 offers a chance for Vancouver to reclaim its place in an industry it helped build.