Ukraine creates “PlayCity” state agency to control gambling and lotteries

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted a corresponding resolution.

The work of “PlayCity” will be coordinated by the Cabinet of Ministers through the Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation, Development of Education, Science and Technology — Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.

In 2025, the agency will be financed within the budget of the liquidated Gambling Commission (CRGL).

In December 2024, the parliament decided to liquidate CRGL and transfer gambling regulation functions to the Ministry of Digital Economy. It was decided to automate licenses to remove the human factor from the process and reduce corruption.

The situation with the gambling business in Ukraine

In July 2020, the Verkhovna Rada legalized gambling in Ukraine. The law legalizes the activities of casinos, bookmakers, including online, slot machine halls, and the organization of online poker. The parliament included roulette, card games, dice, and slot machines as casino gambling. In September 2020, the parliament created the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (CRGL) — a state regulator that is responsible for licensing and regulating the gambling sector in Ukraine.

In 2023, Ukrainians spent almost 400 million hryvnias in online casinos every day, or over 12 billion per month, as Economic Truth reported with reference to the National Bank. The military is most often hit by this industry, who then suffer from gambling addiction.

After this publication, lively discussions began in society about the problem of gambling, in particular among the military. An electronic petition appeared to restrict the operation of online casinos during martial law in Ukraine, which gathered the necessary votes for its consideration in a few hours.

On April 20, 2024, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree restricting the operation of online casinos. In May of the same year, the Cabinet of Ministers completely banned the advertising of gambling.