The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, signed bill No. 2285-d "On state regulation of activities related to the organization and conduct of gambling." This was reported on Verkhovna Rada. Most types of gambling in Ukraine have been banned since 2009.
The government has committed to establishing eight forms of gambling; land-based casinos, online casinos, retail sports betting, online sports betting, slot halls, online poker, totaliser contracts and lotteries. The new market is expected to be somewhere in the region of 40,000 slot machines.
This legal gambling market is expected to generate at least $185 million in annual budget revenues, as well as act as an incentive for the growth of related business areas and the creation of 1,000s of new jobs.
The international betting and technology company Parimatch has confirmed it will be bidding for the new operating licences in the country.
Sergey Portnov, CEO of Parimatch said “I would firstly like to congratulate President Zelenskyi for delivering on his pledge to legalise gambling in Ukraine. He has shown that he is a man of his word and we fully support his agenda to liberalise the local economy. Parimatch has long argued that the development of a fair and regulated betting industry will really benefit Ukraine.”
Since the legislation doesn’t yet offer clarification on licensing costs and industry taxes, operators will have to wait for coming news expected next month.
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