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Reservation for casinos: how companies connected to the gambling business used the opportunities of “Diia.City” and what does Mykhailo Fedorov have to do with it?
What could the Ministry of Digital Transformation, online casinos, and companies with possible Russian corporate ties have in common? Tax benefits and exemptions of employees from mobilization. Questions around these possibilities have arisen for one of Ukraine’s most ambitious digital projects — “Diia.City,” which was supposed to attract investment and develop the domestic IT sector.
The special legal regime created by the Ministry of Digital Transformation under the leadership of Mykhailo Fedorov offers preferential taxation to technology businesses. And for companies that meet additional requirements, residency can become one element of the procedure for obtaining the status of a critically important enterprise and reserving employees. However, this does not mean that every resident automatically receives the right to reserve personnel.
An investigation by hromadske showed that such opportunities were used by companies connected to online and social casinos, as well as enterprises in whose corporate structures journalists found a Russian trace. According to the figures presented in the piece, the examined companies together had nearly 150 reserved employees. At the same time, the reservation periods differ, and some permits may already have expired.
Favbet: scandal, cancellation, and new reservations
One of the most telling examples is LLC "Favbet Tech," which later changed its name to "Highload Solutions." According to hromadske, the company develops software for Favbet and remains linked to the brand’s corporate group. In March 2022 it became a resident of “Diia.City.”
In April of 2024 the company reserved 15 employees. This information became public after Member of Parliament Oleksandr Fediyenko published an order from the Ministry of Economy. The decision caused a public outcry: society questioned why companies whose activities are linked to the gambling business received the right to reserve employees.
Favbet then stated that the company is part of the “Ukrainian cyber army.” Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov explained the need for reservation as a requirement to retain highly skilled IT specialists.
Then Minister of Economy Yuliia Svyrydenko announced the cancellation of the order on reserving employees of companies that raised public concerns, so as not to allow further division.
However, according to hromadske, the story did not end there. From July 2024 to August 2025, another 20 employees of "Favbet Tech" received reservations. In other words, after the high-profile scandal the company again appeared among enterprises whose employees received deferments from mobilization. That in itself does not prove a violation of the law, but it raises questions about the criteria used to assess its criticality.
Three more companies — and 38 reserved employees
The list examined by hromadske also includes LLC "Billtech Games" and LLC "Computer Service." Both companies are connected to providing services in the gambling sphere and at the same time hold resident status in "Diia.City."
"Billtech Games" became a resident in October 2023. According to journalists, between July 2024 and August 2025 the company reserved ten employees. Hromadske names Andrii Rutkovskyi, a former patrol police officer of Vinnytsia region, as its owner. He did not answer journalists’ calls.
After the publication, the company provided its position to the editorial office. They emphasized that a license to provide services in the gambling sphere does not mean the enterprise itself is a casino or directly organizes gambling. The company asserts it has the right to supply software services for this sector.
At the same time, hromadske cites a regulator decision whose appendix described the company’s activity as providing services in the organization and conduct of gambling. This difference in wording requires careful legal analysis: the license name, the list of permitted services, and the company’s actual activities are not always identical concepts.
LLC "Computer Service" received "Diia.City" resident status in July 2023. According to hromadske, from August 2024 to August 2025 seven of its employees had reservations. Company representatives confirmed to journalists that the reserved employees remain in place now.
Two other companies — "Product Madness Ukraine" and "Playtika Ukraine" — operate in the so-called social casino segment. These are games with virtual coins or chips that cannot be cashed out as real money. At the same time, users may be offered to purchase additional in-game resources or features. According to hromadske, these companies together reserved 21 employee in the period from January 2024 to August 2025.
Thus, in just these five companies connected to the gambling sector, journalists recorded 58 employees who received reservations during the investigated periods.
Why can a software developer be a resident of "Diia.City"?
The Diia.City project office explains that direct organizers and operators of gambling cannot be residents of the regime, while software development for the gambling business is a different type of activity.
"These are services consisting of the development of software that is used in gambling," Diia.City project office Legal Lead Oleksii Dobronravov explained to hromadske.
This is a legally significant distinction. However, it does not remove the question of how thoroughly companies’ actual activities are verified and on what grounds they are recognized as critically important for the economy. After all, a software developer may not accept bets or pay winnings, but its product directly serves the gambling industry.
And here a broader question arises for state policy: is formal compliance with criteria sufficient if a company operates in a sector that the authorities simultaneously declare needs tighter control?
Russian ties: prohibition exists, but are checks sufficient?
Another part of the investigation concerns Diia.City residents who, according to hromadske journalists, had ties to Russian business. In the summer of 2022 Minister Mykhailo Fedorov stated that a company affiliated with Russian business cannot be a regime resident. However, in spring 2024 NGL.media published a list of 24 resident companies that, the outlet claimed, earned in Russia or Belarus while simultaneously using Ukrainian benefits.
The Ministry of Digital Transformation then explained that the legislation had gaps: the restrictions did not cover all cases where owners were Russian citizens but resided outside Russia. At the end of 2024, the Verkhovna Rada adopted legislative amendments that expanded the bans. Diia.City residents cannot be companies directly or indirectly connected to Russia through the state, Russian legal entities, Russian citizens, or persons who permanently or predominantly reside on its territory.
But the ban itself does not guarantee that every indirect link can be quickly detected. Especially if the Ukrainian company belongs to a foreign legal entity that has its own shareholders and subsidiaries in other countries.
One example cited by hromadske is "G5 Holding Ukr," a mobile games developer and Diia.City resident since August 2022. The Ukrainian company is linked to Swedish G5 Entertainment. In G5’s financial report for 2024, Russian shareholders were mentioned, as well as two Russian companies of which the Swedish structure remained a co‑founder. According to hromadske, one of them was winding down operations, while the other earned 48 million rubles in 2024.
Meanwhile, "G5 Holding Ukr," according to journalists, reserved 67 employees in 2024. Company representative Oksana Zamula denied that the Ukrainian legal entity has ties to Russia and noted that it is not responsible for the shareholders of the parent company.
Another case is "Mirantis Ukraine," a Diia.City resident since the beginning of 2024, which provides cloud technology services. According to hromadske, American Mirantis Inc. is linked to a Russian legal entity "Mirantis IT," which after the start of the full-scale invasion remained registered in Russia. Journalists reported that the Ukrainian company reserved 20 employees between July 2024 and August 2025.
The head of the Ukrainian company denied that Russian structures were present when she joined. And in December 2025 a Mirantis Ukraine representative told hromadske that the Russian legal entity had effectively ceased operational activity after 2022, but could not be liquidated due to Russian legal restrictions. This position must also be taken into account: the existence of a registered legal entity does not necessarily mean it continues to conduct active business.
The piece also mentions LLC "Laboratory of Information Systems," a developer of software for radio frequency spectrum management. According to hromadske, from July 2024 to August 2025 the company reserved three employees. Journalists also found a link in one of the company’s ownership structures to a Russian legal entity and a Russian citizen. Diia.City, in turn, explained that the share previously owned by Russian persons, according to their information, was transferred to a French company. At the same time, these changes, according to the publication, were not reflected in the Ukrainian registry.
Legal advisor at Transparency International Ukraine Nataliia Sichevliuk emphasized that in such situations it is important to establish who actually controls the business, influences decisions, and receives profit. That is why corporate links require not only formal checks but also document analysis and, when there are grounds, attention from competent authorities.
The Diia.City project office explains that checks are based on data companies disclose and information in state registries. If a prohibited link is identified, a procedure to lose resident status may begin. At the same time, issues of sanctions and investigating indirect links also fall within the competence of other state bodies.
Cosmolot and Serhii Tokarev: another cause for questions
Separately, the outlet Antikor reported on Serhii Tokarev, who is associated with the Cosmolot brand, and on a company from his business circle which, the outlet claims, is a Diia.City resident. The publication raises questions about his possible ties to Russia and media reports about trips to occupied Crimea.
These claims require separate verification from primary sources, and corporate links need clarification against registries. The mere mention in a journalistic piece is not proof of a legal violation. However, if a business receives state tax benefits, the public has the right to understand who stands behind the company, how its ownership structure is checked, and whether it meets the established requirements.
Benefits for IT — but who controls the limits?
Alongside the debate about reservations, in 2024 the problem of gambling addiction intensified. Military serviceman and activist Pavlo Petrychenko called to restrict servicemembers’ access to online casinos and to regulate gambling advertising. His petition collected the required 25 thousand signatures, after which President Volodymyr Zelensky instructed state bodies to prepare proposals to address the problem. Later authorities announced restrictions on online casino operations.
Against this backdrop, the question of reserving employees of companies connected to the gambling sector seems especially sensitive. If a company indeed provides important technological infrastructure, the state must explain the criteria by which it recognizes it as critically important. If indirect Russian ties are found in the ownership structure, the public must understand who and how checks such circumstances.
Diia.City residency itself does not mean either a violation or an automatic right to reservation. But the accumulation of the cases cited raises questions about the transparency of checks and whether control mechanisms work effectively enough.
"Billtech Games": what KRAIL documents show
LLC "Billtech Games" became a Diia.City resident in October 2023. According to hromadske, between July 2024 and August 2025 the company reserved ten employees. Journalists name Andrii Rutkovskyi, a former patrol police officer of Vinnytsia region, as its owner.
After the investigation was published, the company contacted hromadske and emphasized that the right to provide services in the gambling sphere does not mean it is a casino or directly organizes gambling. Billtech Games explained that their license allows them to supply or provide software for the gambling sector, not necessarily to conduct gambling.
At the same time, documents of the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (KRAIL) contain a nuance that does not allow one to rely solely on the license name. In the appendix to the KRAIL decision published in the registry in 2024, the company is described as having the right to carry out activities providing services in the organization and conduct of gambling. Meanwhile, in KRAIL decision No.374 dated 2023, which directly grants the license, the license title is given as the provision of services in the field of gambling, without a separate formulation about organizing or conducting games.
This difference is important, though it does not by itself prove that the company actually organizes gambling. The license title, registry wording, and the real nature of services are different issues that need to be evaluated together. Moreover, in KRAIL’s decision regarding LLC "Favbet Tech," the commission described the company’s activity as providing services in the organization and conduct of gambling, although the license title also concerned the provision of services in the field of gambling.
Thus, the mere presence of such a license does not justify automatically calling "Billtech Games" a casino or claiming the company directly conducts gambling. At the same time, comparing KRAIL documents raises questions about how exactly the regulator determined the permitted type of company activity. For assessing reservations, it is important to establish not only the formal license title but also the company’s actual services and the grounds on which its employees received deferments from mobilization.
The StopKor editorial office is preparing inquiries to the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the mentioned companies to clarify on what grounds they obtained or retained Diia.City resident status, whether they were recognized as critically important, how many employees were reserved, and how their corporate ties were checked. After receiving responses we will supplement the material and continue to follow this story.
Earlier StopKor wrote that former head of German intelligence August Hanning, who was detained on suspicion of spying, is listed as chairman of the board of the company owning Cosmolot: the StopKor editorial office is checking the possible Russian ties of this business.
StopKor also investigated: an alleged Russian passport, 907 million in frozen assets, and a villa for 2 million euros owned by Favbet owner Andrii Matiukha.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Казино "критичного значення": які гемблінгові компанії отримали бронювання завдяки резидентству в "Дія.Сіті"?". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: StopKor.
