Anna Sainsbury co-founded GeoComply in 2011 and helped turn it into the company behind most of the geolocation checks used in legal US online betting. She has led the business through two terms as CEO and now serves as Executive Chairman, working alongside CEO Kip Levin.
This profile covers her career path, the company she built, the awards she has won, and the boards she serves on. It also explains her current role, since her title has changed more than once in the past few years.
Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
| Full Name | Anna Sainsbury |
| Current Title | Executive Chairman and Co-Founder |
| Company | GeoComply |
| Founded | 2011, with David Briggs |
| Headquarters | Vancouver, Canada |
| Industry | Geolocation compliance and fraud prevention |
| Known For | Building the geolocation system behind US legal sports betting |
Who Is Anna Sainsbury?
Anna Sainsbury is a Vancouver based entrepreneur and the co-founder of GeoComply, a cybersecurity and geolocation compliance company. She started her career outside tech, working as an insurance broker before moving into gaming compliance.
In 2011, she and David Briggs launched GeoComply to solve a specific problem. US states were legalizing online betting one at a time, and operators needed a reliable way to confirm a player was physically inside a licensed state. GeoComply built that system.
Today the company checks billions of transactions a month across gaming, streaming, and financial services. Its software runs on hundreds of millions of devices worldwide, and its clients include DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, Amazon Prime Video, and the BBC.
Is Anna Sainsbury Still CEO of GeoComply?
No. Sainsbury stepped down as CEO in March 2025, when GeoComply appointed Kip Levin, a former FanDuel and Ticketmaster executive, to lead day to day operations.
She moved into the role of Executive Chairman, where she focuses on long term strategy and governance rather than daily management. She remains Co-Founder and a key voice in the company’s direction.
This was not her first change in title. Sainsbury served as CEO from 2011 to 2018, stepped back to Chairman while David Briggs ran the company, then returned as CEO from 2022 to 2025 before taking on her current Executive Chairman role.
Career Timeline
| Years | Role |
| 2004 to 2005 | Insurance broker, Allwest Insurance |
| 2005 to 2009 | Commercial Director, Technical Systems Testing |
| 2009 to 2011 | Consultant, gaming compliance and regulation |
| 2011 | Co-founds GeoComply with David Briggs |
| 2011 to 2018 | Chief Executive Officer, GeoComply |
| 2018 to 2022 | Chairman and Co-Founder, GeoComply |
| 2019 to present | Board Member, American Gaming Association |
| 2019 to present | Adjunct Professor, UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law |
| 2020 to present | Board Trustee, Conscious Gaming |
| 2022 to 2025 | Chief Executive Officer, GeoComply (second term) |
| March 2025 to present | Executive Chairman and Co-Founder, GeoComply |
Major Achievements
Sainsbury built GeoComply from a startup into the dominant geolocation compliance provider for legal US sports betting. Under her leadership, the company expanded well beyond gambling into streaming, banking, and cryptocurrency fraud prevention.
She also led GeoComply’s growth through major moments in US gaming history, including state by state legalization after the 2018 repeal of the federal sports betting ban.
Her leadership priorities include:
- Expanding GeoComply into new regulated markets across North America
- Guiding the company’s move into fintech and streaming security
- Building GeoComply Impact, the company’s corporate responsibility arm focused on child safety and gender equality
- Serving as a public advocate for women in gaming leadership roles
Awards and Recognition
Sainsbury has picked up recognition across both the gaming industry and the wider business world. Her honors include:
- American Executive of the Year, Global Gaming Awards, 2020 and 2021
- RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Award winner
- RBC Momentum Award finalist
- Named to Maclean’s Power List, 2024
- Named among iGamingExpress’s Top 100 Most Influential People, 2024
Boards and Outside Roles
Beyond GeoComply, Sainsbury holds several industry and advisory positions:
- Board Member, American Gaming Association, since January 2019
- Board Trustee, Conscious Gaming, since September 2020
- Adjunct Professor, UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law, teaching sports wagering and integrity since 2019
She previously served as a Board Member for MVB Bank from 2020 to 2022.
GeoComply’s Impact on Online Gambling
GeoComply’s technology sits behind the scenes of nearly every legal online sportsbook and casino app in the United States. When a player opens a betting app, GeoComply checks their location to confirm they are inside a licensed state before a bet is allowed.
This matters because US gambling law is regulated state by state, not nationally. A platform that gets this wrong risks losing its license. GeoComply’s scale, built under Sainsbury’s leadership, is a big reason it remains the industry’s most trusted option for this task.
The company’s product line, including GeoComply Core, GeoGuard, and IDComply, also fights account takeover, VPN spoofing, and identity fraud.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Anna Sainsbury?
Anna Sainsbury is the co-founder of GeoComply, a geolocation and fraud prevention company that powers compliance checks for most legal online sportsbooks in the United States.
What company did Anna Sainsbury found?
She co-founded GeoComply in 2011 alongside David Briggs. The company is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.
Is Anna Sainsbury the CEO of GeoComply?
Not currently. Kip Levin became CEO in March 2025. Sainsbury now serves as Executive Chairman and Co-Founder.
What awards has Anna Sainsbury won?
She has won American Executive of the Year at the Global Gaming Awards twice, along with the RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Award and other business honors.
What boards does Anna Sainsbury serve on?
She sits on the board of the American Gaming Association and serves as a Board Trustee for Conscious Gaming.
