Armenia moves forward with gambling amendment bill

The government approved a bill that limits gambling but it still needs the parliament’s nod.

Armenia.- Armenia has been seeking new ways to regulate its gambling industry for quite some time, and Vice Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan came up with a bill earlier this month that limits bookmaking. Now, the government has approved the measure, but in order for it to come into force it needs the parliament’s approval as well.

Simonyan’s bill limits the activities of bookmaking offices in the territory of Armenia, and gambling through the well-known devices at filling stations and different public locations will be banned, as explained by the official when the bill was introduced earlier this month.

“The bill is aimed at enhancing regulatory restrictions of the gambling sector, which will enable making infatuation with gambling a lot more difficult. The current regulations allow gambling through automated devices and bookmaking machines in the entire territory of the country.

“It is recommended to organise it only in the four settlements where casinos are allowed to operate. Participating in organised games will only be allowed after validating age,” said Minister of Finance Atom Janjughazyan at the Cabinet meeting.