Grover, which itself is based in North Carolina, holds licensing agreements in 10 US states, including Ohio, as well as the Canadian province of Ontario. Like NexLevel, it holds a licence in Ohio as a bingo supply manufacturer and has applied for a separate distributor licence. 

Under Ohio law, the Ohio Attorney General's Office is unable to grant any new electronic instant bingo licences until 1 April at the earliest.  

Garrett Blackwelder, President and Owner, Grover Gaming, commented: “We are very excited about the NexLevel team joining our Grover Gaming family.  

“We have known the principals and most of the employees for quite some time, and are thrilled to bring onboard such experienced sales, marketing and customer service professionals. We believe that, when licensed, we will have a truly spectacular team to service the charities of Ohio.” 

Across nine other states, including New Hampshire, Kentucky, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Washington, Louisiana and Virginia, Grover Gaming develops game content, software and systems for lotteries and charitable organisations. 

The company has stated it won’t be requiring any of NexLevel’s charitable organisations to sign long-term contracts, with Grover preferring to focus on “providing the best performing games.” 

Jimmy Forrest, VP of Sales, Grover, said: “We are in the process of onboarding these new team members right now and I really look forward to seeing this newly constituted team in action.

"Ohio is a very important market for us and we are planning to duplicate the success we have had in other states, such as Virginia and North Dakota.”