The government has adopted a resolution to liquidate the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries — it will cease operations from April 1 and give way to the state agency PlayCity, which will operate under the coordination of the Ministry of Digital Transformation.
The government has adopted a resolution to liquidate the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries — it will cease operations from April 1 and give way to the state agency PlayCity, which will operate under the coordination of the Ministry of Digital Transformation.
«We are launching a new stage of regulating the gambling business in Ukraine. We are liquidating KRAL as an ineffective body and launching the state agency PlayCity,» the Ministry of Digital Affairs reported.
The message notes that KRAIL will be liquidated next week, namely on April 1. Instead, the state agency PlayCity will:
The Ministry of Digital Affairs says that the state can receive up to 10 billion UAH in taxes each year, which will be directed to the needs of the Defense Forces.
We will remind you that on March 21, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to create the state agency «PlayCity», which will implement state policy in the field of organizing and conducting gambling and the lottery sector.
In late March 2024, a soldier from the 59th brigade, Pavlo Petrichenko , wrote about a «gambling epidemic» in the Armed Forces of Ukraine and initiated a petition on the website of the Office of the President of Ukraine to restrict the operation of online casinos. It quickly gathered the 25,000 signatures necessary for consideration. On April 15, Pavlo Petrichenko gave his life defending Ukraine from Russian invasion near Avdiivka, Donetsk region.
Subsequently, President Volodymyr Zelensky instructed the head of the SBU, the State Special Communications Service, the Ministry of Digital Affairs, and the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council to collect analytics on online casinos and their impact on part of society.
Later, People’s Deputy and Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy Yaroslav Zheleznyak announced the approval of draft law No. 9256d, which contains restrictions on gambling advertising and access to gambling for the military .
In November last year, a Verkhovna Rada Committee voted to liquidate KRAL, which was to take place by April 1.
