Shadow proprietors and pawn beneficiaries: who profits by millions from the Cosmobet of Mykhailo Zborovskyi and Championclub of Ruslan Drozdov
11.08.2025 10:10
Who exactly controls the online casinos Cosmobet and Championclub?
Despite the shutdown of the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries, its licenses remain active and lucrative, earning millions of hryvnias. The identities of those collecting these earnings are still unclear.
"Comments" decided to investigate who exactly is profiting from Ukrainians through online casinos Cosmobet and Championclub, and it turned out that it is not so easy to find out, although officially questions shouldn’t arise.
Cosmobet – a Russian company or a "subsidiary" of Ukrainian "Gamedev"
In March 2024, the license to open an online casino called Cosmobet was obtained by LLC "Neurolink" (business activity – organization of gambling, authorized capital – 30 million UAH.) and although the site is currently not working, in 2024 the company earned almost 218 million UAH.
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As for the ownership structure, it is somewhat convoluted, as officially "Neurolink" belongs to another legal entity – LLC "Neoplay" (business activity – computer programming, authorized capital – 300 thousand UAH). And the latter is owned by an individual – Mykhailo Zborovskyi.
There is very little information about the owner of a company with a turnover of 218 million UAH. Yes, it’s easy to find media interviews with Mykhailo Zborovskyi, where he talks about working in IT and gambling in markets in Asia, Latin America, Malta, and Curaçao, but this doesn’t eliminate questions. Particularly, where did Mykhailo Zborovskyi get at least 57.69 million UAH to pay the "Neurolink" statutory fund (by law, online casinos require at least 30 million UAH) and the annual license fee (27.69 million UAH).
However, the answer to the 30 million UAH question might be quite simple – they were "withdrawn" from the parent company LLC "Neoplay". According to the OpenDataBot service, in 2023, "Neoplay" had assets worth 30.3 million UAH, and in 2024, the financial report showed only 2.5 million UAH in assets and a loss of 30.6 million UAH. So it seems that some of the company’s proper assets were sold or somehow contributed to the statutory fund of "Neurolink", founded in November 2023.
However, where did the nearly 27.7 million UAH necessary for purchasing the annual online casino license come from, remains unclear. Of course, one might assume that Mikhail Zborovskyi earned these funds during his 10-year previous work in the markets of Asia, Latin America, and Europe, but in 2020, a person with the same name founded a sole proprietorship for computer programming. Since LLC "Neoplay" is also engaged in computer programming, it’s quite likely that the entrepreneur has been working in Ukraine since 2020, and if he had funds for gambling business and 10-year experience, why didn’t he engage in it back in 2021?
Some insights can be gained from the history of LLC "Neoplay", established in July 2023. According to the registers, the company initially belonged to someone named Oleksandr Lysyi and was purchased by Zborovskyi on November 8, 2023, while LLC "Neurolink" was founded on November 23.
A person with similar details – Oleksandr Lysyi ran LLC "Fourth Fort", and this name is not accidental since its owner – a Belarusian citizen Andrey Lappo. At one time, some media attributed links specifically between the Cosmobet online casino and the Russian Sergey Tokarev, who allegedly also owned the Cosmolot online casino, however, this suspicion was not confirmed.
Meanwhile, the media discovered an interesting connection, which may lead to another major player in the online casino market – namely LLC "Gamedev" (code activity – organization of gambling, authorized capital – 30 million UAH).
The fact is, according to intellectual property registers, the trademark Cosmobet owned by LLC "Neurolink", was registered in 2021 upon a request by businessman Ruslan Nonka. And since "Neurolink" itself appeared only in November 2023, it’s obvious that the trademark belonged to the businessman, who was one of the first co-owners of LLC "Gamedev".
The media have written extensively about "Gamedev", its former owners such as Ruslan Nonka, the founder and co-owner of the vodka brand Yakiv Finkelshtein (previously Yakiv Hrybov). Even though the firm was sold to a family of agribusinessmen from the Odessa region, Yakiv Finkelshtein, as previously can still own the company and the online casinos SLOTS CITY and Beton.
Championclub – for Championcasino of the former Lutsk deputy
Another new player, the online casino Championclub, emerged thanks to a KRAIL license in April 2024, issued to LLC "Malina" (business activity – organization of gambling, authorized capital – 30 million UAH).
The owner of the company is Volyn region resident Ruslan Drozdov, about whom a little more is known, but questions arise, although some answers are partially known here.
The main question remains the same – where did a sole proprietor registered in 2014 with computer programming get almost 58 million UAH for the license and the company’s authorized fund. However, he was previously and is a co-founder of several commercial entities, judging by the income of LLC "Malina" in 2024 of 3 million UAH, it seems his business is not very successful.
In general, Ruslan Drozdov is not a newcomer in the gambling market as he owns 14% of LLC "Limon" (business activity – organization of gambling, authorized fund – 30 million UAH), which owns the ChampionCasino online casino, and it grossed 2.5 billion UAH. in 2024.
The appearance of the same co-founder in the ownership of Championclub and ChampionCasino, the apparent similarity in names, clearly indicates the similarity with both brands, and this is indeed the case, however, both of them might actually be backed by not private entrepreneur Ruslan Drozdov, but by Lutsk’s "gambling king", Andriy Pokrovskyi.
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Former Lutsk City Council deputy was dubbed this by his native Lutsk’s media long before the legalization of gambling in Ukraine. The IA "Volyn News" claimed that the gambling business, through a network of entertainment establishments owned by him, Andriy Pokrovskyi started back in the 2000s and, after its ban in 2009, although he declared cessation of work, had not actually done so.
According to the media, allegedly the underground gambling business in Lutsk remained managed by Andriy Pokrovskyi through a network of firms and trusted persons, among whom appears the name of Ruslan Drozdov. The latter was a co-owner and director of a number of firms owned or previously owned by the deputy and individuals who, according to "Volyn News", were engaged in illegal gambling activities in Lutsk in 2019.
Having started his political journey with the Petro Poroshenko Bloc in 2015, Andriy Pokrovskyi is considered one of the wealthiest people in Lutsk and was even regarded as a potential mayoral candidate. However, he appears to have withdrawn from politics, leaving the Lutsk City Council in 2021, and focused on business. Especially since the income declaration for 2021, submitted upon leaving the city council, included 38 real estate objects, 10 vehicles, and the rights to a computer program "Champion", which phonetically resembles the online casino name that also runs on computer programs.
Thus, it can be said that although formally new players are appearing in Ukraine’s gambling market, they are backed by old faces. Even selling the 4 companies from the TOP-10 gambling companies’ market is largely a formality.
