Russia to Potentially Prohibit Online Poker Transactions
10 years ago
17 Oct
The Russian Finance Ministry has introduced a bill which could affect the ability of online gaming companies to operate in the country.
The Finance Bill has the blessing of President Vladimir Putin and, if passed, would prohibit banks from processing online gaming transactions.
The stated aims of the most recent announcement are rather opaque – supposedly to fight against money-laundering – but according to Poker Industry Pro, Rosfinmonotoring (Russia’s Federal Financial Monitoring Service) the agency usually responsible for combating money laundering and terrorist activities, does not support the proposed bill. This has led to the conclusion the Bill is actually aimed at the country’s online gaming industry, which has come under severe pressure this year.
Gambling is not officially legal in Russia, but many people currently ignore this fact and use VPN & Tor services to access online poker sites, a loop-hole which Russian authorities have been trying to close over recent years and months.
The Russian news outlet Kommersant reported the Finance Ministry as stating:
"Under the law, citizens of Russia are prohibited from participating in gambling and lotteries in Russia and abroad, including via the Internet."
Back in February of this year a Russian Parliament (Duma) Committee Chairman, Leonid Levin, remarked that:
"The VPN and Tor usage forces us to invest significant additional funds to the armed forces and to law enforcement agencies.”
This effort to police the nation’s strict gaming policies is not easily implemented however, as Levin explained:
“Though this is justifiable, it does not result in effective information control."
Denis Davydov, the spokesman for Russia’s Safe Internet League commented at the time:
"We strongly support the idea of limiting Russia's access to anonymous networks, including Tor. The 'Invisible' Internet has made it possible for offenders of all kinds to hide their intentions from the state and use it to commit crimes: acquiring drugs and weapons, distributing child pornography, trafficking in human beings - including sex slaves - and leading political struggle,” adding in a rather ‘Cold War-paranoia’ way “Do not forget that Tor was developed and is used by Americans, including US intelligence agencies, to expand the hegemony of the United States around the world."
Although February’s proposed ban failed, the current proposals to state legislators have the added backing of President Putin, although he has also recently asked for a report into the possibility of regulating online gaming, an alternative approach which has the support of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov.
Additionally, the country also unsuccessfully introduced legislation earlier in the year to block Internet Service Providers (ISPs) from allowing Russian residents from accessing online gaming sites. Russia already maintains a ‘Federal Blacklist’ controlled by the agency Roskomnadzor, which includes online poker sites such as PokerStars, PartyPoker and Titan Poker, although many have continued to operate regardless.
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