Russians retain influence on gambling in Ukraine: authorities look to Las Vegas experience

Despite the government's actions in the gambling sector, gambling remains a profitable area for Russians who want to make money in Ukraine and collect personal data of Ukrainian players.

Source: The Guardian

Details: It is noted that Ukrainian officials seeking to push Russians out of the Ukrainian gambling industry are going to follow the methods of the US authorities in the 1980s, when they eradicated the Italian mafia from Las Vegas casinos.

In September 2022, the Commission for Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries began revoking licences, and in the spring of this year, Volodymyr Zelenskyy imposed sanctions on more than 400 individuals and legal entities linked to the Russian gambling business, including five Ukrainian gambling companies. Banks and other financial institutions suspected of facilitating the laundering of gambling proceeds on behalf of Russian oligarchs have also been in the spotlight.

Olena Vodolazhko, a member of the Commission for Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries, said that the regulator had received an invitation to Nevada from the US Gambling Control Board to discuss reforming the Ukrainian system and eliminating Russian influence.

"American regulators are very important for us. Because, you know, what I saw when, for example, I visited the Lithuanians, Switzerland, the Netherlands’ regulators: they started their regulating in the market when they didn’t have such challenges as the mafia or some influence of another country. But the United States had, so I think their experience … can be very valuable for us," she said. 

She said Ukraine hopes to emulate the best practices of US regulators and law enforcement when they worked together to drive the mafia out of Las Vegas. The Security Service of Ukraine is helping the Commission with information on the links between Ukrainian gambling operators and Russia.

The 2020 law on the legalisation of gambling in Ukraine allowed the opening of casinos and slot machine halls in hotels, as well as online gambling and betting. 

The Guardian noted that the Commission was established as a regulator with an advisory body, but soon Russian gambling organisations and legal advisers linked to oligarchs came to work for it.

The Italian mafia played a key role in the development of casinos and hotels in Las Vegas, but the tipping point came in the 1970s when the FBI, along with regulators, launched an investigation into the involvement of organised crime. Subsequently, Nevada passed the Corporate Gambling Act, which made it easier for corporations to operate casinos.

Vodolazhko added that the main task is to reduce the opportunities for money laundering by reforming the systems for collecting and analysing currency movements.

"If they [the Russians] will have some influence, in our gambling industry or some other industry, of course, it will help them to kill us," she said. "You know, I think now it’s the challenge for every public servant and for every Ukrainian citizen to combat the influence of Russia, because any opportunity for them to make money or to gain influence makes them stronger," she summed up.

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