The Ukrainian state agency PlayCity has granted gambling licences to Pate Play Ukraine LLC and Euro Games Technology Ukraine LLC. Both entities are owned by Bulgarian corporate structures connected to businessman Georgi Papazki, who was previously denied permission to open a land-based casino in central Kyiv.
The newly issued licences will allow the companies to officially supply software and partner with Ukrainian gambling operators.
This is not the Bulgarian entrepreneur’s first attempt to enter the Ukrainian gambling business. Last year, Georgi Papazki sought to launch a casino in the capital. However, the regulator rejected the application because the venue was planned inside Kyiv’s Premier Palace Hotel—a property currently under arrest and controlled by sanctioned Russian nationals.
Despite last year’s setback with the physical venue, B2B solution providers from his orbit have now secured the right to operate in the Ukrainian market as software providers.
According to investigative journalists, Georgi Papazki and his brother Walter control major Bulgarian gambling brands Winbet and Inbet. Media reports highlight several controversial points regarding the family and their associates:
Criminal Conviction: Walter Papazki received an actual prison sentence for funding the contract killing of a business rival.
U.S. Sanctions: Georgi Papazki has been linked in media reports to Vasil Bozhkov, a US-sanctioned Bulgarian businessman currently facing judicial proceedings in Bulgaria.
Ukrainian Ties: One of Papazki’s Ukrainian companies, Casino Solutions LLC, shares ownership structure with CIFI Stream Invest JSC, a firm linked by journalists to the business orbit of Ukrainian MP Vadim Stolar.
In a formal response to journalists, representatives of Pate Play Ukraine LLC refuted the allegations against their beneficial owner.
«Georgi Papazki no longer maintains relations with Vasil Bozhkov, categorically denies any ties with Russians, and condemns Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine,» the company stated.
The press office also emphasized that Papazki is not personally acquainted with Vadim Stolar. Regarding the co-registered entity involving CIFI Stream Invest JSC, the company maintained that the partnership was never actually implemented.
The arrival of these new B2B players is expected to shift the competitive landscape within the supply segment of Ukraine’s legal gambling market.