Ukraine: Playcity revokes two licences over alleged Russian ties

The Ukrainian regulator has revoked the licences of Favorit Casino and Favbet VIP Casino due to their links to Russian ownership, either directly or indirectly through ultimate beneficial owners.

Their online casino and poker brands will be shut down as a result of intensified state inspections of the industry.

Local legislation allows for both scheduled and unscheduled inspections of gambling operators. However, because of martial law and other restrictions, the full-scale implementation of scheduled inspections was only recently resumed.

Due to intensified oversight and strengthened enforcement, other Ukrainian operators were also recently issued fines or had their licences revoked.

Last month, PlayCity fined the operator, All City Games, UAH 4.32m ($97,600) after a gaming account was funded with a third-party bank card.

In April, the regulator revoked the operating licence of Favbet Game Slots following a major compliance investigation and imposed a UAH 933m fine.

Furthermore, the regulator attempted to revoke the online casino licence held by Cosmolot after identifying alleged breaches linked to payment processing.

Shortly afterwards, a Kyiv court temporarily suspended the regulator’s decision, meaning the licence remains valid while the legal dispute continues.

Global Gaming Insider followed up with Cosmolot for a comment on the developments. The operator said it had recently received a new five-year licence and passed a scheduled inspection that found no violations serious enough to justify fines or revocation.

Additionally, PlayCity recently announced its first-year results, highlighting enforcement as a key focus area.  Looking ahead, the regulator said its priorities include submitting new gambling legislation to the Verkhovna Rada, updating advertising rules, launching the second phase of the State Online Monitoring System and implementing Ukraine's Strategy to Combat Gambling Harm.