British Columbia’s Independent Gambling Control Office said on August 28, 2026, that contracts tied to sports and entertainment outcomes are gambling products, not securities or derivatives.

The position reinforces the province’s existing model. Commercial online gambling remains reserved for the British Columbia Lottery Corporation.

The statement followed guidance issued on August 27 by the Canadian Securities Administrators and the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization. Those bodies said sports and entertainment event contracts should not be regulated under securities and derivatives legislation.

What the decision means

The securities regulators did not approve sports prediction markets. They said those products fall outside their regulatory framework.

The B.C. gambling regulator then applied the provincial consequence. Sports and entertainment contracts must comply with the Criminal Code of Canada and British Columbia’s gaming laws.

A product can fall outside securities law without becoming legal gambling in British Columbia. The province still controls who may offer commercial gambling to B.C. residents.

The distinction is significant for prediction-market operators. A securities-law pathway does not provide permission to offer gambling products in the province.

PlayNow remains the only authorized online platform

The Independent Gambling Control Office said the British Columbia Lottery Corporation is the only entity permitted to conduct and manage commercial gambling for the provincial government.

PlayNow.com remains the only regulated commercial online gambling website permitted to operate in British Columbia.

The province’s minimum gambling age is 19. The regulator also oversees:

  • Age verification
  • Technical integrity
  • Responsible-gambling controls
  • Advertising standards

The Independent Gambling Control Office said other online gambling websites that allow B.C. players to access sports or entertainment event contracts operate illegally in the province.

The warning concerns the operator’s regulatory status. Changing the product’s label does not change the legal requirements that apply in British Columbia.

A narrower route for prediction-market platforms

The decision closes a potential argument that sports contracts could enter British Columbia through financial-market rules.

Platforms may still pursue contracts based on other subjects. However, the August 27 notice said the status of event contracts outside sports and entertainment remains under assessment.

Canadian securities regulators said two Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization dealer members had been authorized to facilitate trading in a limited set of event contracts. Those permissions do not cover the sports and entertainment category addressed in the guidance.

For B.C. users, the practical rule is direct: sports and entertainment prediction products are treated as gambling, while regulated commercial online gambling is available through PlayNow.com only.

The statements do not create a new licence category for prediction-market operators.