Minus in the budget by more than 100 million annually: how FavBet betting company operates without a license and allows the occupiers to earn

Minus in the budget by more than 100 million annually: how FavBet betting company operates without a license and allows the occupiers to earn money

The controversial betting firm «FavBet», registered in Ukraine, contrary to its loud statements that it has exited the Russian market, continues to operate there. At the same time, FavBet has yet to obtain a license for betting activities, even though the corresponding law legalizing such companies’ work was passed two years ago. As a result, the country’s budget misses over a hundred million hryvnias each year.

But that’s not all. Besides the ethical and political dimensions, gamblers should know that the betting office FavBet is fraudsters who cynically profit from inexperienced players. Promising gold mountains, bookmakers systematically lure money from their clients and leave them with a “broken trough.”

Limited Liability Company «FavBet Betting Company» is registered in Kyiv on Stepan Bandera Avenue. There is some irony here, especially considering this company’s statements about exiting the Russian and Belarusian markets.

For example, the marketing site MMR published a piece with a corresponding statement from FavBet’s management. Just note a small detail of this material – it is partner, i.e., advertising. As they say, “for a fee” many unscrupulous media outlets are ready to publish a lot on their resources, turning a blind eye to important nuances and to verifying the reliability of the stated materials.

FavBet never operated in the Russian Federation? Do you believe that? No? And rightly so.

No lawsuits about the company? After all, there are lawsuits in other jurisdictions...

In fact, FavBet has been operating both in the online gambling market in Russia and in Belarus. This has been written about by many well-known Ukrainian media lately, but there is also other evidence of such activity. Read on.

FavBet LLC, two years after the Law on legalization of gambling in Ukraine, still failed to obtain a betting license for its operation. As a result, the country’s budget misses 108 million hryvnias annually. What can be said, the company that gambles knows how to evade taxes. The same company also cheats its clients who seek easy money.

There are plenty of court cases: what is known about the scandalous betting office

LLC «FavBet Betting Company» is registered in Kyiv and has authorized capital 31 million hryvnias.

And when you go to the YouControl information registry, the system automatically issues warnings about the FavBet office: «Attention required», «Need to pay attention».

During automatic express analysis, the service checks counterparty reliability based on data from 180 information sources and analyzes more than half a thousand factors.

As you understand, a bunch of risks is obvious.

Moving on. The owner, founder, and sole beneficiary is Andriy Matyukha. As media report, he left the country a few days before the full-scale war began in Ukraine and now lives in Croatia.

Notably, according to financial statements for 2020 year, the company’s revenue is zero. And also:

- net profit in the red: - 565,7 thousand hryvnias;

- Assets: total 7,6 thousand hryvnias;

- Liabilities: 372,1 thousand hryvnias.

No data for the previous year is publicly available yet.

In the unified court registry the office is listed in 6 documents related to civil cases.

Head of FavBet Igor Siruk also appears in two civil cases related to this office.

And another aspect. The company "FavBet" also operates under the brand "Favvit".

Indeed, when accessing the Favorit site through a VPN, the responses come on behalf of FavBet that one cannot enter…

And here the number of court cases simply skyrockets. And these are not civil cases, but criminal…

Yes, when searching the court registry by site name, the service shows 35 documents. And that’s just one search option in the registry; dig deeper and you’ll find many more criminal cases. But today we won’t go deeper.

And note, all documents without exception relate to criminal cases of Favorit.

And what does FavBet have to do with a license for betting activities? It doesn’t have one!

As the publication Facts.org reports, this office has a whole stack of licenses, but the main one, i.e., for betting activities, is absent.

Note that the company has a license for online casino for 23 million hryvnias.

Other narrow-licensing licenses cost very little and are not as expensive as betting.

What does the absence of a license for betting activities in Ukraine mean? It means that Ukraine’s budget misses 108 million hryvnias annually from FavBet. In the absence of a betting license, FavBet operates in betting-like sectors, like a lottery… No comment.

How FavBet “feeds” Russian occupiers

23 May, the popular online publication Delo published a scandalous article.

The author described how this office functions without a license, evading lawful taxation.

In addition, it is reported that last year a criminal case was opened regarding FavBet and Favorit’s illegal activities. Searches of betting offices were conducted. After the searches, law enforcement stated that these brands illegally obtain super-profits from betting activities. How do they do this? Revenues are transferred to the accounts of foreign companies where the beneficiary is FavBet leader Andriy Matyukha.

And now a very notable nuance. This scandalous article is no longer accessible on the original source. A virtual trace remains in Google:

Yet after that, within a month three sponsored patriotic pieces appeared on FavBet’s site. Probably expensive... How much the bookmakers paid to suppress the negative remains guessable.

As the article recalls, “which no longer exists,” more than ten years ago Andriy Matyukha was a subject of a loud scandal. Then Anonymous hackers breached deputy-regional MPs’ mailboxes. It became known that the businessman-bookmaker made a very favorable offer to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. For 200 000 dollars per month he requested centralized protection for his illegal gaming empire across the country.

By the way, you can read more about what was in the distant material of Delo on the Fakty site.

In fact, despite patriotic materials clearly of sponsored nature, the betting office has been operating for eight years now, since the start of the Donbas conflict and the annexation of Crimea, on online gambling markets in Russia and Belarus.

And here are reviews from residents of Russia, where allegedly FavBet never operated…

Bets in rubles speak for themselves.

And finally

Beyond all of the above, gambling enthusiasts should know that the FavBet betting office is a fraudster that cynically profits from inexperienced players. They promise gold mountains, gradually luring money from their clients. We will not rely on rumors; here are several representative real reviews.

- «Scam casino»: they take everything you are allowed to win and then suck out the money.

- Cheaters and swindlers: money cannot be withdrawn, the company office does not exist. Never get involved with Favorit.

- They brazenly lie and take winnings: the most unreliable betting office in the CIS. I do not recommend anyone. They lure big money.

To be continued…