Ukraine to replace gambling regulator with new state agency PlayCity
The Ministry for Digital Transformation has confirmed that a new state agency called PlayCity will replace the existing regulator.
Ukraine.- It’s been confirmed that the Ukrainian Commission for Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (KRAIL) will be dissolved on April 1. Mykhailo Fedorov, deputy prime minister and head of the Ministry for Digital Transformation, has confirmed that the regulator will be replaced by a new state agency called PlayCity.
The move is being billed as part of a larger effort to optimise state bodies and improve regulatory efficiency. However, KRAIL has faced various problems and controversies since it was established to oversee the newly re-regulated Ukrainian gambling market in 2020.
A proposal to dissolve KRAIL was tabled as far back as 2023. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed Law No. 9256-d in January to mandate the regulator’s dissolution.
The regulator has struggled to operate during the war with Russia because of its collegial structure comprising a chairman and six members. Since five members need to be present at all meetings, licence applications and other decisions were often delayed due to members serving in action.
KRAIL has also faced criticism for allegedly weak regulatory enforcement, tax uncertainties and the widespread presence of illegal gambling operators in Ukraine, some of them with ties to Russia. In December, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) announced that it had detained KRAIL’s director Ivan Rudyi for allegedly supporting the operations of a Russian-owned online casino in the country as well as on narcotics charges.
New Ukrainian gambling regulator
The Ministry for Digital Transformation said in a statement that KRAIL had failed to effectively regulate the gambling industry. It said that PlayCity would operate directly under the ministry and would report to Fedorov.
It will inherit KRAIL’s 61 staff and operate from the same office but will be expected to strengthen oversight, implementing stricter controls to combat illegal gambling, including Russia-linked gambling operators. It will also digitalise the issuance of gambling licenses to improve efficiency.
The government estimates that revenue from legal gambling and lotteries will generate up to UAH 10bn (€222m) a year in taxes, which will be directed towards defence spending.
The ministry said: “The reforms will establish transparent rules for all market participants and ensure effective state oversight. It will help bring the industry out of the shadows and strengthen the Ukrainian economy.”
All gambling was banned in Ukraine in 2009 after nine people died in a fire at a gambling hall in Dnipro. Gambling was re-legalised in 2020 when legislation was passed to re-regulate the sector. Since then, KRAIL has been responsible for overseeing online and land-based casinos, sports betting and lotteries.
Last year, Zelenskyy enacted National Security and Defence Council (RNBO) measures to ban gambling among members of the military. Ukraine also introduced a ban on using military iconography in gambling advertising.
The measures were inspired by a petition launched by Pavlo Petrychenko, a commander in the 59th separate motorised infantry brigade.
