The Azerbaijani Milli Majlis (National Assembly) has approved amendments to the Criminal Code in the third and final reading, increasing penalties for organising illegal gambling.
Offering illegal gambling involving minors or generating significant income through these activities could result in imprisonment of two to four years.
Furthermore, if the same offences are committed by an organised group or involve income generation on a significantly large scale, imprisonment could range from three to five years.
Repeat offenders could face stricter punishments, with prison sentences of up to five to eight years. Previously fixed fines of AZN 10,000 to AZN 15,000 would be replaced by tiered fines of up to twice the amount of income generated.
Azerbaijan is placing greater emphasis on addressing illegal gambling activities. Recently, it established the National Cybersecurity Agency (MKA), which will take measures to prevent unlicensed gambling platforms from operating in the country.
In May, the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) also raised concerns about the scale of the illegal market.
Back then, CBA Chairman Taleh Kazimov stated: “Extremely large sums are being transferred abroad. Some individuals open bank card accounts to take part in gambling activities abroad. The volume of such payments reaches millions of manats. We must prevent this.”
He added that the financial sector should not act as an intermediary for the movement of illegal funds and must report such activity to the Financial Monitoring Service.
In March, Azerbaijani authorities shut down a large illegal online casino network and detained four individuals. The operation was led by the Main Department for Combating Cybercrime of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Azerbaijani businessman Emin Agalarov plans to develop a large integrated resort casino complex at the Sea Breeze resort city near Baku
