Russia’s Finance Ministry is reviewing options to legalize online casinos under a model similar to sportsbook regulation

Russia’s Ministry of Finance is looking at ways to legalize online casinos by borrowing from the current regulatory framework used for bookmakers, according to Deputy Finance Minister. For high-risk operators and their payment providers, that is the part that matters: if this moves beyond a policy idea, it points to a potential licensed channel for a vertical that is still structurally sensitive for banks and PSPs.

1. The statement came from a Deputy Finance Minister of Russia, who said the ministry is studying options to legalize online casinos.
2. The model being considered would be based on Russia’s existing system for regulating bookmakers, which gives the ministry a ready-made reference point rather than starting from zero.
3. The source does not give a draft law, timeline, or technical details on licensing, payment routing, taxation, or enforcement. For PSPs, that means the immediate takeaway is not “market open,” but “policy direction is being examined.”