Ontario Opens Niagara to Up to Three New Casino Operators, Targets C$3 Billion in Investment

The Government of Ontario and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) on 28 October 2026 opened the Niagara Region to as many as three new casino operators, asking each to commit at least C$1.5 billion and pay a C$100 million entrance fee. The province expects the process to bring in more than C$3 billion of direct gaming investment and more than 10,000 construction jobs. OLG is the provincial agency that conducts and manages lottery and casino gaming in Ontario; private companies run the casinos under contract with it.

The Call for Investment is the first gaming step in the province's Destination Niagara Strategy, a plan to turn Niagara Falls into a year-round destination. All dollar figures in the announcement are Canadian dollars; some coverage, including GamblingNews, gave them without a currency.

What Ontario is asking for

The answer is big, resort-style projects rather than extra gaming floors. Phase one invites experienced operators to register interest. OLG will shortlist candidates and invite them to a competitive second phase where they submit detailed plans for integrated casino developments with hotels, entertainment and dining.

According to Casino.org, the province also expects more than C$600 million in other private investment over the 20-year life of the strategy. The entrance fee is meant to offset the revenue the province gives up by ending the current operator's exclusive rights.

The 9.75% tax rate

Ontario will introduce a 9.75% gaming tax rate for Niagara operators under a new gaming framework. The province says this reduces the burden on operators, and The Globe and Mail described it as a cut. The public announcement does not publish a direct comparison with the commercial terms that apply today, so the size of the reduction is not confirmed.

A defined tax rate is a change in approach for Ontario's land-based market, where casino income has been split between OLG and its private service providers under long-term contracts. Ontario took a similar path online in 2022, when it opened a competitive iGaming market run through iGaming Ontario, which later became a separate agency from the AGCO.

How MGE's exclusivity ended

The opening was only possible after an August 2026 agreement between the province, OLG and MGE Niagara Entertainment, the Mohegan-controlled company that runs Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara for OLG. MGE gave up its exclusive rights to land-based gaming in the region but keeps running both properties, Covers reported at the time. Earlier coverage of Fallsview includes an AGCO fine over anti-money laundering lapses.

Current scale, from the province's Destination Niagara Strategy page:

The province also says the full strategy could add C$3 billion a year to Ontario's GDP and create about 46,500 permanent jobs. These are government projections.

What officials said

Zee Hamid, Ontario's Minister of Tourism, Culture and Gaming, said "Niagara has enormous potential for growth" and that new gaming investment will bring new attractions to the region. OLG president and CEO Duncan Hannay said the work will support new hotel, entertainment and dining investment alongside Fallsview and Casino Niagara.

What to watch

Operators have about five weeks to respond. The process will test appetite among large North American and Asian resort groups for a third and fourth Niagara property next to two established casinos, and how OLG manages a bigger land-based estate that already faces close scrutiny over anti-money laundering reporting and suspicious cash transactions at Ontario casinos. Elsewhere in Canada, provinces are reshaping online markets too, with Alberta closing its iGaming transition period this month.

Status reviewed on 29 October 2026. Figures and deadlines are from the Government of Ontario and OLG announcement of 28 October 2026 as reported and quoted by trade and local outlets; all amounts are Canadian dollars. More casino news and North America coverage.