Favbet’s offshore millions: how Andriy Matyukha’s Ukrainian firm is sponsoring Russia

They are accepting bets and paying out winnings, despite the full-scale conflict in Ukraine. This occurs despite the company’s official statement declaring that it ceased operations with Russia and Belarus.

These reports indicate that LLC "Bookmaker Company Favbet" — the name under which Favbet is registered in Ukraine — continues to operate in the Russian and Belarusian online gaming markets, even though it announced its withdrawal from these markets a month after the conflict began.

Indeed, although it took an entire month for such a statement to be made, Favbet did say in March that it would cease operations in Belarus and Russia. However, this does not reflect reality and is nothing but pure lies.

Journalists have shared a correspondence with Favbet’s support service where they posed as Russian citizens seeking assistance with registration and money withdrawals, to which the support team promptly explained how to proceed.

To verify that the journalists aren’t lying or fabricating anything about this scheme, it only takes a few minutes online and a VPN connection. Enter “Favbet Russia” into the search engine:

The first page of results gives us numerous links to Russian resources. And following the same process for Belarus:

Click on the first link. The outcome is quite predictable:

As with the second link: 

To avoid tiring the reader — every link provided by the search engine tells how to engage with Favbet’s bookmaker services in Russia and how to withdraw any winnings.

Currency options include the dollar, euro, and ruble. Withdrawal methods are also available: Visa, Mastercard, Maestro, Visa Qiwi Wallet, Yandex.Money, "Unified Wallet," Skrill, and AdvCash.

Regarding the restriction on bookmaker activities in Russia, or rather, ways to bypass it, the solution is quite simple: 

One just needs to find a "mirror site." There are plenty: 

Favbet’s operations in Russia are complicated not by the bookmaker firm itself but due to Roskomnadzor’s ban — businesses of this kind (not just Favbet) are forbidden in the Russian Federation.

Nevertheless, nothing has deterred anyone before or after February 24. Methods to bypass Russian regulators’ bans have always been found.

Returning to Belarus, which Favbet allegedly also exited — the situation there is even simpler since there’s no ban on gaming company activities in general, and Favbet specifically. The operation there continues unimpeded: 

A bit about statistics — Favbet is a well-known company in Ukraine, operating under the Favorit brand since 1999, and conducts its activities in Ukraine as a lottery.

The only licenses obtained by Favbet following the legalization of gambling business in Ukraine include an online casino license costing 23 million UAH and licenses for Billionaire casino and gaming machines, which are significantly cheaper than the bookmaker license, which is Favbet’s primary activity.

However, the company does not possess a bookmaker activity license. The reason is simple — the license costs 108 million UAH per year. Nonetheless, bookmaker activities are carried out.

The company has vast experience in "negotiating" with authorities: in 2013, hackers from the international group Anonymous hacked emails of deputies from the Party of Regions and published numerous emails. Among them was a letter from Andriy Matiuha at [email protected] complaining to the "regionals" about being forced to operate illegally and deal with frequent "raids" from law enforcement, thus offering to "collaborate."

Andrey Valerievich Matiuha is the sole beneficiary of LLC “Bookmaker Company Favbet": 

This "experience" explains why the company lacks a bookmaker activity license. Nevertheless, this activity is successfully carried out — just visit their official website to confirm.

However, there was an “attack” on Favorit: On May 5, 2021, the police opened a criminal case regarding the illegal activities of Favbet and Favorit. In this context, investigators of the National Police of Ukraine even conducted searches in the company’s Kyiv offices, then claimed that Favbet and Favorit illegally receive excess profits from betting activities, with revenues accumulated through a series of foreign firms ultimately benefiting Andrey Matiuha.

However, the result here was rather predictable — try following the link placed a few lines above. The material that narrated this criminal case has long been erased.

For its part, the Favbet Group denies any claims of illegal activities by Favbet and Favorit from law enforcement agencies. "None of the officials or founders of the legal entities mentioned in the article have been accused in any criminal case. Currently, there are no criminal proceedings against the group of companies," stated the letter containing the company’s official stance.

This gives plenty of food for thought leading to an unmistakable conclusion.

And a bit more history: 

It’s nice to get praise, but note the dates and places from which these reviews come — Russia and Donetsk. 

Of course, one might (and it’s expected Favbet’s PR team will soon declare) say Favbet was fighting the regime by funneling money out, but there’s a catch. While money was indeed drawn from Russia and annexed territories and deposited in offshore accounts — apart from Ukrainian registration, Favbet is registered in the offshore jurisdiction of Curaçao — what about paying winnings regularly and fully to players in Russia, Belarus, and ORDLO?

Another point to consider. Can anyone believe that one can earn millions in Russia using these "mirrors" and "Curaçao jurisdictions" so easily? The system of business extortion (not just illegal) is set up so strictly that every shawarma stall fears delaying payment even by a qquiqtihxiqerkmp day.

Furthermore, illegal operations, and especially bookmaker firms, pay millions — not hryvnias like payments to the Ukrainian treasury, but dollars. Monthly. Where and how these payments are subsequently distributed is left to speculation. Some payments enrich Russian enforcers, while others are converted into tanks and shells used to devastate Favbet’s country of registration, Ukraine. Exactly how much money Favbet generated for Russia and where it went over the years of operation there is speculative. What’s certain is that these funds were “properly” managed by defectors from the Party of Regions, who maintain a close relationship with Favbet owner Matiuha and who play a significant role in the conflict Russia has been waging against Ukraine since 2014.