Yulia Svyrydenko: Government restarts national lottery market for the first time in over 12 years

The Cabinet of Ministers has adopted a resolution establishing new and clear rules for lottery operators developed by the Ministry of Digital Transformation.

"For more than a decade, this sector has been operating in a grey zone: lacking control, transparent reporting and licence fees. This has led to significant losses for the budget and created opportunities for abuse," said Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko following a Government meeting.

The new rules provide for:

- open competitions for obtaining licences;

- annual licence fees — over UAH 67 million from three operators;

- an electronic accounting system enabling the state to track sales and payouts in real time;

- unique QR codes for each ticket and a terminal to ensure protection against counterfeiting and confirm the legality of the equipment.

According to the Prime Minister, this decision brings the lottery market back into the legal field and creates the conditions for real control over its operation. The next step is to update the Law on State Lotteries. It needs serious improvement to end the monopoly, close regulatory gaps, as well as open the market to international companies and investment.