Earlier this year, the Board of Directors of iGaming Ontario announced that Joseph Hillier would be taking over as the agency’s President and Chief Executive Officer.
Before this, he was Chief of Staff to Ontario Attorney General Hon. Doug Downey, where he played a key role in overseeing the implementation of Canada’s first private-sector-driven iGaming market. So what does the future look like now that he’s on board, and how might his leadership shape the growth of the industry?
Joseph Hillier: Background
Before answering those questions, it’s first important to consider Hillier’s background. As mentioned before, he was front and center of the establishment of iGaming Ontario, having spent over a decade working in the financial and legal services industries before that.
More recently, however, Hillier served as Chief Strategy Officer and Corporate Secretary at the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario – AGCO – where he kick-started several strategic and regulatory initiatives.
With this in mind, he seems well placed to steer Ontario’s iGaming market through its next phase of growth, using his experience to not only support private operators but also attract global investment that can take the province to a higher level.
iGaming Ontario Before Hillier
The story so far for iGaming Ontario has been a positive one. Launched in 2022, the agency was created to oversee and regulate Ontario’s newly liberalized online gambling market, marking a major shift from a government-controlled monopoly to a private-sector-driven model. Its mandate was twofold: to provide players with a safe, regulated environment, while also enabling private operators to compete legally in the province.
And it’s been successful. Across review and aggregator platforms – with one of the most popular being Casino.org – players can find a wealth of the very best top-tier online casinos, specifically able to verify the validity of casinos that offer the best slot games on the market without having to worry about fairness or regulatory compliance.
One of the best things about these sites is the combination of variety and reliability – something which isn’t always a given considering the abundance of unregulated offshore platforms. Across the most popular casinos, players can play a range of games from leading software providers, participating in promotions and tournaments, all through secure payment options that are backed by the oversight of the agency.
There has also been a definitive effort to promote responsible gaming and player protection, with operators required to implement measures such as deposit limits and self-exclusion tools. Beyond player safety, iGaming Ontario has similarly focused on ensuring transparency and accountability within the market.
Trusted reviews are crucial for making smarter decisions, and while players have this for licensed and regulated operators, that doesn’t mean they can assume all platforms will remain equal in quality of safety. Thankfully, iGaming Ontario itself regularly audits those operators, enforcing strict compliance standards across the board to maintain that all-important trust and integrity.
iGaming Ontario Under Hillier
In terms of what might change, then, it’s fair to say there has already been a distinct – and as we just mentioned, successful – effort to establish a safe, respected iGaming market. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement. Indeed, under Joseph Hillier’s leadership, we can expect this foundation to expand and refine itself, with a particular focus on global integration.
One of the drawbacks to the province’s market, for instance, has been the restriction on cross-border poker and DFS play. Since the market’s launch, Ontario players were required to compete exclusively against others physically located within the province, creating a ring-fence that limited liquidity and constrained the competitiveness of these contests.
Smaller player pools, of course, mean fewer high-stakes games and less variety, which in turn makes the market less attractive to global operators.
With the recent court ruling now opening the door to cross-border participation, however, Ontario has the opportunity to connect more seamlessly with the international scene, addressing these liquidity constraints and positioning itself as a more competitive, globally integrated hub. Hillier will be right behind this, using his experience in regulatory strategy and operator relations to guide the province and make it a more scalable ecosystem.
We can also expect him to drive innovation for the best casinos, focusing specifically on strategic partnerships and technological modernization. This could involve collaborating with international operators to introduce new game formats, or perhaps leveraging AI technology to improve player experiences and retention.
It’s also likely we’ll see a stronger emphasis on data-driven regulatory oversight. With iGaming Ontario growing rapidly, and with no sign of slowing down, data is going to play a huge role in keeping everything grounded – not just through ensuring fairness, but in monitoring player behavior and identifying new, emerging risks.
Growth Will Define Hillier’s Tenure
No one other than Hillier himself knows the next steps, but given the landscape at the moment, and the way other popular hubs like Malta and the UK are moving, it’s easy to predict what might be coming next. Essentially, it’s all about growth. Growth in player engagement, growth in operator participation, and growth in market revenue.
Hillier has already positioned himself as a forward-thinking leader, one who is likely to leverage Ontario’s regulatory framework and technological tools effectively. And since we know his effectiveness in the overall implementation and management of Ontario’s iGaming market, there’s no reason why he shouldn’t be able to guide the province onwards, turning it into the globally competitive, sustainable iGaming hub that it always had the potential to be.
