Ukraine’s Gaming Authority Suspends Cosmolot Casino and Imposes Fines

(AsiaGameHub) –   Ukraine’s PlayCity, the state agency responsible for overseeing gambling activities, has revoked the license of SpaceX LLC—the company behind the Cosmolot brand—after auditors identified violations of settlement rules, including the use of peer-to-peer payment methods.

PlayCity head Gennadiy Novikov stated:

A gambling license requires operations to adhere to legally established requirements. Our role is to ensure consistent and transparent supervision of license holders so that the market functions under uniform rules for all participants.

Gambling activity in Ukraine is regulated by the Law “On State Regulation of Activities for the Organization and Conduct of Gambling.” The agency can impose financial penalties for violations and, in serious cases, revoke licenses.

Acting Minister of Digital Transformation Oleksandr Bornyakov commented:

To make this oversight even more effective, the Ministry of Digital Transformation has developed amendments to the core gambling law. The goal is to further strengthen regulation in the area of betting and tighten requirements for vetting gambling organizers.

In addition to losing its gaming license, Cosmolot was fined a total of UAH 12.9 million for violations involving peer-to-peer payment transactions and accepting deposits via third-party banking instruments.

Cosmolot’s suspension came shortly after another licensed lottery company (PlayCity) was suspended from lottery approval pending further investigations into the legality of its business operations.

Cosmolot had only recently obtained its gaming license at the end of January this year. Originally, there were three approved lottery companies: Patriot, MSL, and the Ukrainian National Lottery. According to Interfax-Ukraine reports, all three paid the mandatory license fee of UAH 24.2 million ($554,000).

With Cosmolot joining Patriot in losing their gaming licenses, PlayCity has temporarily suspended two licensed lottery operations. A review of all company licenses will take place as part of this crackdown, and there are also plans for a fully online licensing process that will replace paper-based applications, queues, and in-person visits.

The new system being developed by the Ministry of Digital Transformation and PlayCity will allow companies to register via their personal accounts in minutes, using data from the State Register’s central database that is automatically checked instead of manually verified.

Last month, PlayCity and YouTube announced they would partner to develop a method for blocking illegal gambling advertisements.