Russia includes Skrill and QIWI on its black list

As part of Russia’s war on unregulated online gambling, the government is now targeting payment providers.

Russia.- Since September 2015, Russian media regulator Roskomnadzor has pressured domestic internet service providers (ISPs) to block any online gambling operators attempting to service players living in the country.

Several international operators have been blocked so far and now Roskomnadzor has also made the decision to block affiliate portals where member sites can generate revenue through marketing. Furthermore, payment providers have been the latest group to be targeted, with e-wallets Skrill and QIWI now on Roskomnadzor’s black list.

Last week, Skrill and QIWI receive the warning to remove links to unauthorised Russian gambling sites and to cease processing payments for those sites. Since its launch in February 2016, a centralised payment provider called TSUPIS will be the only legal option in Russia to process payments for Russian online gambling operators. This latest measure against Skrill and QIWI closes off the payment market to reflect the adjusted legislation.