Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation is preparing a comprehensive overhaul of the country’s gambling regulatory framework. The proposed changes will cover gambling legislation, taxation and the state lottery system.
Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation Natalia Denikeeva outlined the government’s priorities in an interview with local media.
The Ministry argues that the legalisation of gambling in 2020 was not accompanied by a comprehensive alignment of all related legislation. As a result, certain provisions across the regulatory framework now conflict with one another.
Bringing the three legislative areas into alignment is therefore considered a key step towards creating a more predictable operating environment for the sector.
Denikeeva pointed to the absence of major international gambling companies from the Ukrainian market since legalisation as an indication that the current regulatory environment remains a barrier to investment.
Another major component of the proposed reform is the digitalisation of gambling licensing through Diia, Ukraine’s government digital services platform.
The Ministry expects greater digitalisation to reduce manual work in licensing and help limit opportunities for corruption.
Déjà vu, or will we see something concrete? Ukrainian lawmakers have repeatedly proposed numerous measures to improve transparency, strengthen safer gambling protections and overhaul the regulator. While these proposals are well-intentioned, lawmakers have spent recent years trying to establish a proper framework for the sector but have, so far, almost always fallen short.
Indeed, Ukraine’s gambling sector faces growing concerns about transparency.
In May, allegations emerged that state-owned Sense Bank may have facilitated illegal gambling transactions.
Separately, Member of Parliament Nina Yuzhanina previously raised concerns over possible money laundering after citing National Bank of Ukraine data showing gambling payouts being transferred to bank cards different from those originally used for deposits. Some of the transactions also involved unusually large sums.
Meanwhile, Danylo Hetmantsev, Head of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy, has repeatedly warned of potential tax evasion by gambling operators.
At the beginning of the month, the regulator PlayCity proposed stricter limits on both gambling time and player spending
