Despite the war, the general decline of the economy and the continuous loss of population, the gambling market in Ukraine demonstrates impressive stability and even growth. According to the results of 2024, the ten leaders of this industry collectively earned more than 55.5 billion UAH. This is only 1% more than in 2023, but the decline in profitability indicates that a fierce struggle for market share has begun in the industry.
Such data is provided by Opendatabot, analyzing the financial statements of the largest players in online casinos, bookmaking companies, and the lottery market.
The list includes nine online casinos, three of which are bookmakers, as well as the only lottery operator, the Ukrainian National Lottery. Four companies have changed owners, indicating active asset restructuring.
Who earned the most?
In first place is the company Favbet (bookmaker + online casino), which doubled its revenue to UAH 21.32 billion in one year, or 38% of the total revenue of the TOP-10. At the same time, its profit fell by 20% to UAH 1.38 billion. At the end of the year, the company's owner, Andriy Matyukha, was replaced by his son Dmytro.
In second place is Slots U.A., which owns the brands 777, Slotoking (now Betking). The company increased its revenue by 3.6 times to UAH 12.4 billion. At the same time, its profit reached UAH 2.55 billion, a record among all market participants. The company is owned by Pavlo Zhurylo, who, according to open sources, previously appeared in investigations into energy schemes at state-owned enterprises.
Third place went to the company "Native APPS" (Super Gra brand), which showed the largest increase in revenue - 7.7 times (to 4.68 billion UAH). Its owner is a citizen of the United Kingdom, Chubini Irakli, whose name was previously mentioned in the context of Cypriot intermediary companies for the CIS market.
Other players and "new blood"
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"Lemon" (ChampionCasino): revenue 2.54 billion UAH, profit — 174 million UAH. Owner — Andriy Pokrovsky, deputy of Vinnytsia City Council.
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Starbloom Gaming (Slotor777): a newcomer to the market with a profit of UAH 27 million in the first full year of operation. Headed by Volodymyr Naumets.
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Ukrainian National Lottery: revenue increased 1.5 times to UAH 866 million. The company received UAH 56 million in profit, almost six times more than a year earlier.
Only 6 out of 10 companies ended 2024 with a profit. Their total profit was UAH 4.34 billion, which is almost half the amount in 2023. That year, the entire TOP-10 together earned UAH 7.25 billion.
At a time when businesses across the country are facing shelling, falling purchasing power, and emigration, the online gambling sector is not just surviving, but growing at a massive rate. And while taxes from this business are substantial, issues of ownership transparency, changes in beneficiaries, and possible schemes through lottery and bookmaker licenses still remain open.
