The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario has issued CA$120,000 in monetary penalties to Great Canadian Entertainment for serious software compliance failures.
The regulator flagged 40 instances where revoked or unapproved bill validator software was installed across multiple Ontario casino sites between February and March 2025.
Bill validators are standard components inside gaming machines that verify the authenticity and value of cash inserted into the terminal.
These components also play a significant role in anti-money laundering controls embedded within gaming machines, making their integrity a regulatory priority.
AGCO did not publicly disclose the specific locations where the unauthorised software had been installed, but confirmed the penalty orders against Great Canadian Entertainment.
The regulator described the conduct as a clear and serious breach of its compliance standards, leaving no ambiguity around its position on the matter.
“Casino operators are responsible for ensuring that changes to gaming systems are properly reviewed, tested and authorised before implementation,” AGCO stated.
“Using unapproved software in a live casino environment is a serious compliance failure,” the regulator added, reinforcing the weight it places on pre-approved system changes.
Under Ontario law, any operator issued with an Order of Monetary Penalty has 15 days from the initial notice to file an appeal with the Licence Appeal Tribunal.
The Licence Appeal Tribunal operates as part of Tribunals Ontario and functions independently from AGCO, providing operators with a separate avenue to contest decisions.
This enforcement action against Great Canadian Entertainment is not the only regulatory matter AGCO has handled in recent months across Ontario’s gambling sector.
In May, Relax Gaming and Arrise Solutions were both issued financial penalties of CA$40,000 each after their content appeared on unlicensed websites, despite having taken prompt action to restrict access.
Beyond enforcement activity, AGCO and iGaming Ontario have also been advancing player protection measures across both the land-based and online segments of the market.
iGaming Ontario officially launched BetGuard last month, a centralised self-exclusion system designed to cover the entire regulated online gambling market across the province.
Earlier in April, Ontario legislators drafted a bill that would have prohibited online gambling operators and their partners from running advertisements within the province, though it was defeated on second reading in May.
