New Zealand has released new data showing the country’s online gambling market is now worth more than NZ$1.3 billion (approx. $750 million) a year, as officials prepare to launch a fully regulated online casino sector for the first time.
The figures were published by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) ahead of major gambling reforms scheduled to begin later this year. According to the report, online gambling activity in New Zealand has continued to grow steadily, with both customer spending and transaction volumes increasing across much of the market.
The DIA said the findings show the growing scale of online gambling in the country and reinforce the need for a regulated framework focused on consumer protection and harm prevention.
Market continues to expand
Trina Lowry, Programme Director for Online Gambling Implementation at the DIA, said the market is expanding “both in breadth and depth”, with more people gambling online and existing customers spending more frequently.
The report, put together by research firm DOT Loves Data, looked at online gambling activity between October 2023 and September 2025. To estimate the market size, researchers analysed consumer card transaction data, excluding spending linked to state-run operators such as Lotto NZ and TAB New Zealand.
According to the findings, citizens spend around NZ$1.36 billion ($820 million) on online gambling each year. Monthly spending has stayed above NZ$100 million ($60 million) since March 2024, and by September 2025, the market had around 360,000 active customers.
The report also found that the majority of gambling activity is concentrated among a relatively small number of operators. The top 15 gambling merchants accounted for more than 82 per cent of total market spending.
Growing user interest
Data compiled by Blask, an iGaming market intelligence and analytics platform, also suggests growing momentum in New Zealand’s online gambling sector following the country’s move towards regulation. Blask Index, which measures aggregated user interest across gambling brands within a market, has registered a rise since licencing plans were formally announced.
The index stood at 2.92 million in October 2025 before slipping slightly to 2.79 million in November. It recovered to 2.92 million in December, then dipped to 2.59 million in January 2026. However, after licencing rounds were confirmed in February, market interest began strengthening again, with the index rising to 2.61 million in February, 2.69 million in March and reaching 2.95 million in April 2026.
Returning to the government data, most of the money spent by New Zealand gamblers was directed to operators based in Cyprus, Gibraltar, Great Britain, and Malta. Online casino operators recorded particularly strong growth during the period covered by the report.
Sports betting, however, moved in the opposite direction. Spending in that segment fell sharply, alongside declines in both transactions and active customers. The government data also raised concerns around gambling activity among financially vulnerable communities.
Three stage licencing process
According to the report, the most deprived 40 per cent of New Zealand’s population accounted for more than half of total online gambling spending, while the wealthiest 20 per cent represented less than 15 per cent of the market.
Officials say the findings are a call for safeguards before the regulated market goes live. Earlier this month, New Zealand brought in its first legal framework for online casino gambling after the Online Casino Gambling Act 2026 officially took effect.
Authorities are now preparing a three-stage licencing process under which up to 15 online casino licences will be auctioned ahead of the market launch on 1 December 2026. From June 2027 onwards, only licenced operators will be legally allowed to offer online casino services to New Zealand customers.
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