Billionaire Andrey Matyukha operates a gambling \"laundromat\" by leveraging dual citizenship and circumventing legal requirements to enhance Favbet’s earnings

Billionaire Andrey Matyukha operates a gambling "laundromat" by leveraging dual citizenship and circumventing legal requirements to enhance Favbet’s earnings

For decades, gambling has been a hot topic of debate, while also ranking among the most lucrative industries.

In 2023, official sector revenues reached record figures, with casinos and bookmakers earning 54.9 billion hryvnias. Favbet, previously known as «Favorit», was exceptional, achieving a phenomenal 425-fold growth according to official records.

Favbet’s revenue amounted to 10 billion or almost 18% of the entire market. What has driven such rapid growth? It is unlikely that Ukrainians, in the second year since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, have become much richer to start throwing extra money on casinos and bets. On the contrary, according to all statistical data and survey results, poverty in our state continues to grow. 

The largest companies in the gambling market, infographic Opendatabot 

Therefore, the question arises, where did these tens of billions of hryvnias come from and is there any manipulation in the statistics that the Favbet company publicly demonstrates? 

From illegal to legal 

The company «Favbet» (originally – «Favorit») was founded by entrepreneur Andrey Matyukha back in 1999. We won’t delve into the history of the bookmaker’s office, but several facts repeatedly appeared in the media that, according to different sites, Matyukha tried to remove from the internet. 

Firstly, it should be mentioned that during the period from 2009 to 2020 there was a ban in Ukraine on the activities of casinos, online casinos, and betting companies. All companies that provided such services to the population at that time were outside the law and, according to the Criminal Code of Ukraine, committed a criminal offense. «Favorit» was no exception, which, despite the legislative ban, continued its gambling business. 

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In 2016, the National Police of Ukraine launched a large-scale criminal proceeding, entered into the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations under No. 12016100040000990 dated 23.01.2016 under Article 203-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine («Illegal activities in organizing or conducting gambling games, lotteries»), against the owners of «Favorit» and «Favbet» sites, which by that time had already «stamped out» dozens of domains in Ukraine. All of them led to the address of an illegal online casino. As a result, the state budget did not receive hundreds of millions of hryvnias. Several companies related to blocked domain names appear in the materials of the criminal proceeding. However, in 2020 the Kyiv Court of Appeal issued a decision, according to which access to dozens of sites used by illegal casinos was restored. 

Excerpt from the decision of the Kyiv Court of Appeal in case No. 755/1439/16-k 

Judging by the data from the Register of Court Decisions, the active stage of the investigation lasted quite a long time. As of February 2021, 186 rulings were made in the criminal proceeding. They mostly concern searches, seizures, and arrest of property. Suddenly, in February 2021, any investigation ceases. Since then, 4 years have passed, and the proceeding has been virtually “buried.” It turned out, probably, because Favbet “legalized” 3 months later - in April 2021, the Gambling and Lotteries Regulatory Commission issued Matyukha’s company a license to operate in the gambling sector. It all boils down to the fact that the casino was able to redeem itself from the criminal proceeding in this way. 

Decision of the Gambling and Lotteries Regulatory Commission on issuing Favbet’s license 

However, in “legalization” there are still nuances. First and foremost, attention should be paid to the fact that the «Favbet» and «Favorit» sites were registered to another company – LLC «Lucky Land». This firm never had a license for gambling activities, its main type of work is retail trade. The founders of «Lucky Land» are Ukrainian citizens Ivan Mukha and Sergey Kazachenko. No information about the owners of the enterprise could be found, which leads to thoughts that they may be frontmen for the company. It is not surprising, since according to data from state registers, «Lucky Land» appeared in at least 90 court decisions in criminal proceedings. Moreover, on the eve of the war, the company accumulated a significant tax debt – 2 million 680 thousand hryvnias. 

Information about the tax debt of LLC «Lucky Land» (data Clarity Project) 

It seems that the company was used as the owner of illegal casino sites at one time, and then, having accumulated significant debts and an entire “baggage” of criminal proceedings – it was frozen. Nevertheless, everything turned out well for Matyukha’s Favbet: the company received a license, and all previous questions regarding the illegal activities of the Favorit and Favbet sites were dropped. 

Business in Russia and Belarus – on a low start? 

In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea and then introduced troops into the territory of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. For most entrepreneurs, the aggression became a moral stop for further work with Russia. But for Matyukha, it seems, money does not stink, because after the aggression against Ukraine, his bookmakers began only to expand and not only in Russia but also in Belarus.

After the start of the full-scale invasion, Favbet and Favorit officially declared that they completely cease their activities in the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus, but is that so?

Checking the data on Russian and Belarusian sites, it is really possible to say with certainty that the casinos belonging to Ukrainian businessman Andrey Matyukha have stopped working. But the whole situation looks like the entrepreneur is waiting for the first convenient opportunity to return to the enemy market.

Let’s start with Russia. Formally, Favbet never worked on the territory of the Russian Federation, as the company did not receive licenses for gambling market activities. But at the same time, the company «Bet Invest», owned by a Belarusian legal entity Favbet, was founded in June 2014, three months after the annexation of Crimea. According to data from Russian registers, its main activity was real estate. Nonetheless, the company unlikely ever operated – in 2019, it was liquidated. 

Information about LLC «Bet Invest» (company registered in the Russian Federation) 

Despite the fact that «Bet Invest» was liquidated almost 6 years ago, the trace of Favbet on the territory of the Russian Federation remained – personally, Andrey Matyukha registered the Favbet trademark in 2020. As of now, it remains valid and is protected by the legislation of the aggressor state. 

Information on TM Favbet’s registration

The situation with Belarusian business seems even more interesting – in the country, Favbet was an official bookmaker, which received a license in 2013, valid until February 2023. Apparently, Favbet did not try to revoke the license, despite all statements that all ties with the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus are severed. Moreover, Matyukha’s legal entity – LLC «FavBetBel» is still registered, and Belarusian registers testify that the company is paying off debts that Belarusian executors forcibly collect from it. Moreover, during the full-scale invasion, there were at least 4 such notifications. 

Information about the activities of LLC «FavBetBel» (company registered in the Republic of Belarus) 

Everything suggests that the activities of Andrey Matyukha and Favbet in the countries that attacked our state have not ended, but are merely “on pause.” In this context, it is also worth recalling that it has been repeatedly discussed online that Matyukha has Russian citizenship. To confirm this fact, his Russian passport was published. 

Passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation in the name of Matyukha Andrey Valeryevich 

Of course, this document can be created in Photoshop, but checking the information about the issuance of the Russian passport confirmed that this document is valid: 

Taking into account that Favbet is closely linked with the payment service "Diamond Pay," which is also suspected of ties with the Russian Federation, a whole puzzle is formed, demonstrating that the complete cessation of work in the territories of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus is just a smoke screen. In reality, the Belarusian company continues to operate, and in Russia, Matyukha still remains the owner of the trademark and, presumably, a passport with a two-headed bird.