The acquisition will add eCOGRA to Visualize’s gaming TICC portfolio following its earlier investment in BMM Testlabs
Independent testing and certification are becoming increasingly strategic in regulated gaming, as operators and suppliers face more jurisdictions, more technical standards and faster product-update cycles. The Visualize Group has agreed to acquire eCOGRA, a globally recognised provider of testing, inspection, certification and compliance services for the gaming industry, from Hanover Investors Management LLP.
The transaction will see eCOGRA continue to operate under its existing leadership, with Will Shuckburgh remaining as Chief Executive Officer. Financial terms were not disclosed, and the acquisition remains subject to customary regulatory approvals and clearances. The deal represents Visualize’s second investment in the gaming TICC sector, following its acquisition of BMM Testlabs, which closed earlier this year.
Founded in 2003 and headquartered in London, eCOGRA serves gaming software suppliers, platform operators and online gaming regulators across more than 50 jurisdictions worldwide. The organisation is recognised for independent testing and certification standards focused on player protection, fair gaming and regulatory compliance.
The acquisition comes as demand for regulated gaming testing, inspection, certification and compliance services continues to expand. Gaming products must be independently tested and certified before entering regulated markets, and again when products are updated, creating recurring demand for specialist laboratories as new jurisdictions open and technical standards develop.
BMM Testlabs and eCOGRA bring complementary capabilities to Visualize’s gaming compliance portfolio. BMM provides testing and certification services across the broader regulated gaming market, including land-based and digital segments, while eCOGRA is strongly focused on the online gaming sector. Visualize said it intends to expand capacity, offer customers a broader licensing umbrella, accelerate turnaround times and widen the range of high-quality options available to customers and regulators. The companies will continue to operate as independently accredited businesses, maintaining their own standards, methodologies and decision-making.
As part of the transaction, Visualize also intends to extend its broad-based employee ownership programme to eCOGRA’s employees, allowing them to participate in the value-creation plan for the business.
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, said:
“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.”
David Cowan, Managing Partner at Hanover Investors, said:
“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. 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.”
The transaction follows Visualize’s completion of the BMM Testlabs acquisition in March 2026. That deal was described as the first private equity control acquisition of a major regulated gaming testing laboratory in North America, with BMM serving suppliers, operators and regulators across six continents and holding more than 700 regulatory and related business licences.
For gaming suppliers and operators, the proposed acquisition points to further institutional investment in certification infrastructure at a time when regulatory complexity is rising. Faster testing capacity, broader jurisdictional coverage and reliable certification processes are becoming key commercial requirements, especially for suppliers launching games across multiple regulated online markets.
For regulators, the transaction will be closely watched because testing labs play a central role in market integrity. Visualize’s emphasis on independent accreditation, separate methodologies and continued operational independence for eCOGRA and BMM is therefore central to the positioning of the deal.
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP and Greenberg Traurig acted as legal advisors for Visualize. Macquarie Capital acted as financial advisor for Hanover and eCOGRA, while Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP acted as legal advisor for Hanover and eCOGRA.
