IBIA registers 56 suspicious betting signals

The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) continues to be after suspicious betting activity around the world, using feedback and data provided by its partner network of more than a hundred leading sportsbook and gambling companies across numerous geographical regions. In its customary report on betting activity, the association flagged 56 alerts during the first quarter of 2024.

Overall, the association recorded an increase from the 34 alerts reported in Q4 2023. The signals in the latest report were registered across six sports, and specifically soccer with 24 signals. The majority of all signals originated in Asia, followed by North America and South America which were tied for second spot. Interestingly, in this year’s report, only four signals were reported over the period.

This was a significant decrease from Q4 2023 when Europe had experienced 17 suspicious betting incidents. Commenting on the latest reports, IBIA CEO Khalid Ali said that the quarter saw another increase in the overall number of reported incidents, with soccer in Asia particularly susceptible to such manipulations.

"IBIA’s alerts are supported by detailed global customer account data only available to IBIA and its membership, which continues to grow, widening our world-leading market coverage. That account data provides evidentiary information that is vital for advancing investigations and imposing sanctions," Ali noted.

IBIA has not only had bad news to report in its quarterly report, however. The association similarly took a closer look at some key markets, such as Ontario, which is a regulated sports betting and online gaming market in Canada, and one of the best ones in terms of overall channelization.

Onshore channelization, IBIA said in its official press statement, had reached 92% in 2024, and it may actually inch up to 97% by 2028. The percentage gain may seem small, but it’s the hardest to achieve. Speaking about Ontario, IBIA currently has members that cover 60% of the private betting operations in the market, and the association is keen to further expand its reach in the market, allowing it to monitor local betting activities and track down fraudulent activity.

IBIA’s efforts and the efforts put in by sportsbooks and global watchdogs have been paying off. The association registered 285 suspicious betting alerts in 2022, but only 184 a year later in 2023.

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