Russia Toughens Rules For Bookmakers and Gambling, Looks to Protects Players and Secure Payouts

According to reports from Russia, the world’s largest country is ready to implement a much tougher series of laws regarding all facets of gambling.

Russian Parliament is prepping a new bill whose rigorous directives and guidelines will be directed at casino operators and bookmakers. The proposed legislation will be sent for approval to State Duma Committee on Economic Policy, Innovation Development and Entrepreneurship.

Not Just Sports are For Betting

Within the legal document, certain amendments have been made to make way for language with a revised list of events that are eligible for betting…

…which, apart from sports manifestations, are plentiful: from now on, Russian residents will be able to place their bets on live entertainment shows and even political referendums and elections, to name a few.

The new law also looks to protect players’ rights, because it urges betting companies and operators to provide firm guarantees that players’ winnings will be paid out. In addition to this…

…banks will have new obligations as well, as they will have to issue the guarantees to bookmakers only after meeting certain minimum requirements that would provide them with the said guarantee in the first place.

Grappling With Semi-Regulated Market

It is believed that Russia – which last year hosted the largest sporting event in the world after Olympic Games, FIFA World Cup – is actively working on making its gambling landscape much more operator-friendly…

…and is even being proactive in luring foreign operators to open their subsidiaries in this nation. Back in September 2018, national telecom agency Roskomnadzor, announced a new set of measures and upgrades that will make it impossible for internet service providers to the blocking mechanism.

This was done in an effort to keep international online gambling sites who target Russian players at bay and is accomplished by a program that enables entering domain’s forbidden registry using Ipv6.

The Demolition of a Gambling Zone

Late last year, a decree signed by Russian Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev, effectively shut down the gambling zone near the city of Azov, which was forced to close its facilities on December 31st.

In 2007, a legislation was ed that restricted gambling in the country to four areas: Vladivostok, Kaliningrad on Baltic Sea, Altai Krai in Central Asia and district near southern city of Azov.

However, President Putin signed a new measure that favors the Krasnaya Polyana region, ultimately disqualifying Azov. The said favored zone is located near the city of Sochi, where 2014 Winter Olympics have been held and have helped develop this particular area of the country.

Source:

“Russia to Tight the Rules for Bookmakers”, Niji Narayan, europeangaming.eu, April 16, 2019.