The Visualize Group, a private investment firm specializing in mission-critical services businesses, has agreed to acquire eCOGRA, a leading provider of testing, certification, and compliance services for the global online gaming sector.
The acquisition follows Visualize’s recent purchase of BMM Testlabs, further strengthening its position in the gaming testing and certification market.
Founded in 2003 and headquartered in London, eCOGRA serves gaming software suppliers, operators, and regulators across more than 50 jurisdictions worldwide. The company is widely recognized for its independent certification standards that promote player protection, game fairness, and regulatory compliance.
Together, eCOGRA and BMM will provide complementary expertise across digital and land-based gaming, enabling Visualize to expand service capacity, broaden licensing coverage, enhance turnaround times, and deliver greater value to customers while maintaining each company’s operational independence and accreditation standards.
As part of the transaction, Visualize plans to extend its employee ownership program to eCOGRA’s workforce, aligning employees with the company’s long-term growth strategy.
Will Shuckburgh, CEO of eCOGRA, said, “For more than two decades, eCOGRA’s mission has been to ensure that players can trust the games they play and that operators can meet the highest standards of compliance. As regulated gaming expands into new markets around the world, the demand for fast, rigorous, and reliable certification has never been greater. Partnering with Visualize gives us the resources to serve our customers better — to invest in our people, our technology, and our capacity — while continuing to operate with the independence and integrity that our accreditation partners and customers expect.”
C. C. Melvin Ike, Founder and Managing Partner of Visualize, added, “As high-conviction thematic investors, we back exceptional businesses and management teams providing mission-critical services in growing markets, and we build deep expertise in the sectors to which we commit. Building on our experience in regulated gaming, the independent testing and certification that both eCOGRA and BMM provide is fundamental to protecting players and sustaining the trust of regulators, and the two businesses bring distinct capabilities across online and land-based gaming. With eCOGRA, our intention is straightforward: to build eCOGRA into a generational business that can deliver faster, more responsive, and more innovative service to a fast-growing market that needs more high-quality service. We’re thrilled to partner with Will and the entire eCOGRA team.”
“We invested in eCOGRA because it was a high-quality business operating in an attractive market, with a well-earned reputation that had been built over many years,” shared David Cowan, Managing Partner at Hanover Investors. “Since then, the team has continued to strengthen the business, expanding its global reach, investing in its capabilities and reinforcing its position as a trusted partner to regulators and operators around the world. We are proud of what has been achieved during our ownership and grateful for the commitment and hard work of Will and the wider eCOGRA team. We believe Visualize is the right partner to support the next phase of growth and are excited to see eCOGRA continue to develop in the years ahead.”
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed, and the transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and clearances.
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP and Greenberg Traurig acted as legal advisors for Visualize. Macquarie Capital acted as financial advisor for Hanover and eCOGRA. Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP acted as legal advisor for Hanover and eCOGRA.
