Closure of Illegal Online Casinos in Ukraine
Following the directive from the State Special Communications Service on July 8, 2025, Ukraine has closed 133 illegal online casinos.
This was reported by the Association of Ukrainian Gambling Business Operators (AUGBO).
«Today, the Security Service of Ukraine, State Special Communications Service, NKEC, and AUGBO completed a large-scale operation to block 133 illegal online casinos operating in the Ukrainian internet space. The relevant directive from the State Special Communications Service dated 01.07.2025 No. 435/3236 regarding the blocking of IP addresses/websites was sent to Ukrainian internet providers on July 3, 2025, and is mandatory for execution within 3 working days», the statement said.
According to AUGBO, the shadow business that has been stopped generated illegal turnover of between 3 to 5 billion UAH quarterly.
The operations of illegal online casinos were blocked using technical and software tools. Illegal financial processing was also halted, and relevant P2P payments were frozen.
According to the association, up to 50% of the gambling market remains in the shadows, resulting in the state losing up to 10 billion UAH annually. In contrast, licensed Ukrainian gambling operators paid more than 17 billion UAH in taxes last year, and 6.4 billion UAH from January to April 2025.
As emphasized by AUGBO president Oleksandr Kogut, illegal casinos, most of which have roots in the Russian Federation, directly harm the state, legal businesses, and, most importantly, Ukrainian citizens. These sites, which are often cloned after being blocked, carry a high risk of fraud and leakage of personal and financial information of players.
AUGBO reminded that since February 14, 2025, the formation and implementation of state policy in the field of gambling in Ukraine is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Digital Transformation. On March 21, 2025, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to create a new central executive authority — the State Agency «PlayCity». The fight against illegal casinos is one of the priority tasks of the new gambling regulator.
As reported, in just two weeks of operation, the «PlayCity» agency identified and submitted for blocking 824 illegal online casinos to the National Commission responsible for the regulation of electronic communications, radio frequency spectrum, and postal services.
