The Ukrainian Gambling Council has clarified its position regarding a number of individuals and gambling companies that have been sanctioned by the country’s government.
In a statement on LinkedIn, UGC Chairman Anton Kuchukhidze said the inclusion of companies such as PokerMatch and Parimatch was a mistake and not an attack on individual Ukrainian companies or the entire legal gambling industry in Ukraine.
The UGC Chairman stressed that every industry has its tough times and that it is critical that law enforcement agencies act quickly and effectively against the activities of Russian brands, not Ukrainian ones.
The sanctions suspend business activity in Ukraine for 50 years and could prevent companies from withdrawing capital placed in the country or transferring licenses or intellectual property.
PokerMatch was hoping to reach a settlement in the near future as it suspended all Russian assets on its platform and terminated all partnership relations with anyone associated with russia.
In response to the sanctions, Parimatch Ukraine closed its website, suspended all commercial partnerships, and began issuing refunds to all active customer accounts.
Kuchukhidze said in a statement: «I am convinced that Parimatch will be able to convey to all state agencies that it is right, because this brand took the principled pro-Ukrainian stance since the beginning of the large-scale invasion.
Parimatch stopped the operation of the franchise on the territory of the Russian Federation, and Ukrainian company Parimatch began to systematically provide aid to all defence and security forces of Ukraine. To date, the company has allocated more than UAH 500 million for those purposes.»
Kuchukhidze concluded his assessment by stating that in the event of a tax discrepancy, the government should act through the tax authorities and courts, rather than through the most stringent measures, to minimize the risk of enforcement errors.
«The UGC is always open to all government agencies regarding providing information about the state of the legal gambling business in Ukraine.»
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