KRAIL, which issued the license to Pin-Up, is accused of condoning violations, and the lack of effective control allows the company to continue operating despite criminal cases and debts. No evidence could be related to Russian citizens’ control of the company’s activities after the inspections conducted by law enforcement agencies. In addition, this information was refuted by the judicial system, which dismissed the lawsuit against the news agency that disseminated the false information. The issuance of the license for Pin UP did not violate the law, and the references to the owners from Russia were found to be unreliable. The investigation found that the detained nominal owner did not have legal sources to contribute 30 million hryvnias to the authorized capital of a company with a license to organize gambling. Before that, he was in Cyprus and met with the real owners of the online casino — Russians.
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These charges demonstrate the systemic nature of the violations, which go far beyond simple tax evasion. The investigation believes that Pin-Up is part of an organized criminal scheme that uses the gambling business as a tool for money laundering and financing activities that threaten the security of Ukraine. Pin-Up casino operates legally in India thanks to a license obtained in Curacao. This document allows online gambling and betting services, as well as INR transactions.
Financial flows were also established in the interests of filling the Russian budget and supporting armed aggression against Ukraine. PIN-UP appeared in Ukraine at the end of 2020, even before the official legalization of gambling in the country. Nowadays, the company’s representatives justify their activities by claiming that they worked under an international license. Despite its young age, the gambling club managed to gain a lot of credibility among Ukrainian gamblers.
At the beginning of his journey, he was a project manager, where he gained essential skills and knowledge that eventually allowed him to take key positions in the industry. His efforts in managing Interkassa and creating the Yedynyy Prostir demonstrate his deep understanding of market needs and technology capabilities. Thus, the entrepreneur can boast commercial understanding and a vision of developing the country’s entertainment industry, moving on to Pin-Up Ukraine online casino. This is an important step in the investigation that may shed light on the real ties of Pin-Up online casino to Russia.
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As a result, the court suspended expenditure operations until July 7, 2025, and seized the funds. Law enforcement officers have detained the nominal owner of the online casino PIN-UP, which is suspected of laundering Russian money. Currently, we have four types of payments in Diia, which are made by Yediniy Prostir. These are the army of drones, military bonds, the Presidentʼs initiative United24, and administrative payments to the state.
Pin-up Global represents a relatively large number of projects, making the platform multilingual and popular around the world. In addition, it is worth noting that Igor Zotko owns the payment system Yediniy Prostir LLC, which is closely related to Diya. The company earns a lot of money when Ukrainians pay for traffic violations, single tax and other services in Diia. According to rough estimates, the revenue of Yedynyi Prostir LLC in 2022 will reach more than UAH 25 million.
- According to rough estimates, the revenue of Yedynyi Prostir LLC in 2022 will reach more than UAH 25 million.
- At the same time, there are attempts to drive the company into the shadows to avoid paying taxes and continue operations without government oversight.
- The sanctions imposed by the Ukrainian authorities after unfounded accusations against our partner in Ukraine and the start of the trial were, unfortunately, expected.
- The license for organizing and conducting online casino gambling was issued to UKR GAME TECHNOLOGIES LLC by the Commission for Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries in 2021.
Their rhetoric is actively supported on certain platforms that may have a commercial interest in trying to protect the reputation of online casinos. Based on the previously mentioned facts, we can safely declare the honesty of the platform towards its users. Thanks to the responsible approach Pin-up casino is authorized in many countries and is actively used among players around the world. For 2023, the technological perfection of the project competes with the largest platforms in the field of gambling entertainment.
Information about PIN-UP Ukraine
Secondly, the price of services, Yediniy Prostir won the tender for these services, our offer was the most favorable for the customer. You also need to understand that none of the government agencies pays the financial company, all earnings come only from administrative fees. “PIN-UP Ukraine will continue to hold a leading position in the market and surprise players with new unique offers and services,” commented Igor Zotko. Igor Zotko, owner of PIN-UP Ukraine, has turned his business into a successful example of combining an innovative approach with high social responsibility in the Ukrainian gambling industry. It is alleged that he spent a long time in Cyprus, where he was in contact with the real Russian owners of PIN-UP. In addition, the company issues points and other “virtual money” to customers that are not subject to taxation.
PIN-UP ownership structure
In May 2022, PIN-UP.RU changed its name to FONKOR, and in 2022, it paid RUB 579 million in taxes to the Russian budget. Legalization of the market in Ukraine covered betting, casinos, poker, and lotteries at once, so this is a confident step forward. No other country, and the gambling market exists in almost all civilized countries, has taken such a bold step. The United States is moving from state to state in legalization, there is progress in Europe, Brazil has been trying to move forward for 5 years, but shadow schemes have been operating there all this time. Ukraine has successfully overcome the first step on the way to a healthy, competitive and, most importantly, transparent market.
The regulator should highlight market issues, directly communicate state requirements, and reach consensus. Moreover, Pin-Up is accused of collecting personal data of users, including members of the Armed Forces, law enforcement officers and other persons liable for military service. This information may pose a threat to national security, as the transfer of such data to Russian structures could be used for blackmail or other criminal purposes. The company was notified of the court hearing by email and phone, but its representatives did not attend the hearing and did not provide a response.
These operations allow to reduce official revenues and conceal real financial turnover. This seems to be a sign that a real struggle for control over the information field has begun in the Ukrainian media segment, where everyone expresses their side and plays for the outcome in the next political or economic game. The owner of Ukr Game Technology is Igor Zotko, who was detained by the State Bureau of Investigation at the beginning of the year. As a result, VICTORIA-SOFT LLC was deprived of its license on the basis of indisputable evidence, but the second company, UKR GAME TECHNOLOGIES, which is the basis of Pin-UP, was left untouched.
His work and activities illustrate how it is possible to achieve commercial success while remaining committed to integrity and community support in difficult times. PIN-UP also uses alternative domains registered in offshore jurisdictions, which allows it to circumvent the control of Ukrainian regulators and withdraw funds abroad, including to Russia. The latter became the owner of the Ukrainian part of the PIN-UP brand in March 2023, having bought the business from a “mysterious investor”. Some people go to the gym, some go to the movies or fishing, and some play in casinos. These are evenings with friends – easy and relaxed, without an unhealthy desire to win all the money in the world.
If a player has encountered problems in his personal life against the background of the game, he can always set restrictions on financial and temporary spending or even ask for the account to be blocked. On January 9, 2025, the media reported on the detention of Igor Zotko, the nominal owner of the PIN-UP online casino, who is suspected of collaborating with the aggressor state. Investigators claim that the actual owners of the company are Russian citizens, and Zotko had no legal sources to contribute UAH 30 million to the authorized capital of the company, which received a gambling license.
- KRAIL, which issued the license to Pin-Up, is accused of condoning violations, and the lack of effective control allows the company to continue operating despite criminal cases and debts.
- For 2023, the technological perfection of the project competes with the largest platforms in the field of gambling entertainment.
- The biggest question in this story is about the regulator of the Ukrainian gambling business, the Commission for Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (CRGL).
- Don’t you think that the leadership of the State Tax Service, represented by the newly appointed Ruslan Kravchenko, should stop the chaos within the gambling market in Ukraine?
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However, whether this https://pinupgame.in/ will have real consequences for everyone involved in the business remains an open question. Further developments may reveal a much deeper influence of Russian shareholders than it seems at first glance. The first company holds the license, and the second is a structural part of PIN-UP, which is responsible for software development and maintains the gambling website. The biggest question in this story is about the regulator of the Ukrainian gambling business, the Commission for Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (CRGL). Having indisputable evidence that PIN-UP was controlled by the Russians, this body refused to revoke their license at the last minute and has been hiding from public comment for two months. Punin was accused of laundering millions of dollars in the EU, Ukraine, and the UK.
After the full-scale invasion, these individuals officially withdrew from the shareholding, but evidence points to their actual influence on the business. Our number one priority then was to protect our employees, especially those in the cities where the offensive began. We evacuated them to the central and western regions, guaranteed them stable salaries, and made one-time payments to some of them. In addition, we delivered power banks and EcoFlow charging stations to our employees. These are separate activities that have me as the owner – the only thing in common.