12.01.2025
Cybercrimes
Money laundering
PIN-UP: from charity to accusations of collaboration with the aggressor state
On January 9, 2025, the media reported the detention of Ihor Zotko, the nominal owner of the PIN-UP online casino, who was suspected of aiding the aggressor state. In just one day, the media space witnessed an unexpected reaction – numerous publications about Zotko’s “humanitarian activities” that went against the very essence of the suspicions. Articles that were striking in their uniformity praised him one after another as a great philanthropist who donated money for drones, helped the army, and supported the country in a crisis. It’s interesting, isn’t it?
What do these publications have in common? In addition to the fact that almost all of them appeared on the same day, used old materials and interviews with Zotko that were published in 2022-2024, they were not clearly labeled as advertising or “promotional,” although some were even distributed in sections that usually publish useful news, such as “Life” or “Society.” One thing is clear: these materials cannot be a coincidence.
Even more surprising is that some of them even used old articles about his participation in a fundraiser for Sea Baby drones, which was announced in February 2024 and has long since been completed. This is a clear manipulative move, an attempt to make the information look favorable with the help of the temporal context.
And what is even more interesting: why did an active media campaign start now, when Zotko has come under suspicion?
The amazing synchronicity in publications is not limited to news on websites. Telegram channels, in particular those with a large audience, such as Monaco Battalion, Trukha, All-Seeing Eye, and many others, also joined the campaign.
According to a study by the Institute of Mass Information, they actively published two different versions: one of Zotko as a philanthropist and patriot, and the other of PIN-UP casino, which “conducted financial transactions for Russia.”
The Telegram channel “Insider UA”, known for its pro-Russian publications and unverified information, published two posts in one hour that contradicted each other. First, there was a post saying that Zotko was actively helping the army, and a few minutes later, the news that his casino was transferring billions of hryvnias to Russia.
This seems to be a sign that a real struggle for control over the information field has begun in the Ukrainian media segment, where everyone expresses their side and plays for the outcome in the next political or economic game.
Zotko and PIN-UP actively deny the allegations, claiming that they have never had any ties to Russian capital or sanctioned individuals. Their rhetoric is actively supported on certain platforms that may have a commercial interest in trying to protect the reputation of online casinos.
What is known about PIN-UP?
Formally registered in Ukraine, PIN-UP is part of a global brand created by Russian citizens. The founders include Alexander Matyashov, Ivan Bannikov, Dmitry Punin, and Marina Ilyina. After the full-scale invasion, these individuals officially withdrew from the shareholding, but evidence points to their actual influence on the business.
After the company was “repainted” as a Ukrainian brand, PIN-UP began to operate actively on the Ukrainian market, using nominal owners such as Igor Zotko. At the same time, the business continues to receive income from Russia through affiliate programs and mirror sites.
How does the scheme work?
First, the main mechanism of income tax and VAT evasion is misdirection, when payments from customers are credited as payments for other services not related to the gambling business.
In addition, the company issues points and other “virtual money” to customers that are not subject to taxation. These operations allow to reduce official revenues and conceal real financial turnover.
PIN-UP also uses alternative domains registered in offshore jurisdictions, which allows it to circumvent the control of Ukrainian regulators and withdraw funds abroad, including to Russia.
In 2023-2024, the State Tax Service repeatedly issued fines to PIN-UP for tax evasion, but the company successfully appealed all decisions in courts. As a result, the state has already lost hundreds of millions of hryvnias in taxes, and the funds that should have been used to finance the army and social programs have ended up in the accounts of offshore companies.
Don’t you think that the leadership of the State Tax Service, represented by the newly appointed Ruslan Kravchenko, should stop the chaos within the gambling market in Ukraine? The group of Hetmantsev and the head of the National Bank of Ukraine, Pyshnyi, has spread a system of kickbacks and cover-ups that is long overdue for destruction.
And although a number of law enforcement agencies have initiated criminal proceedings based on our materials, such as the State Bureau of Investigation Nº 62024000000000286 under Part 4 of Article 110-2, Part 2 of Article 209, Part 2 of Article 255, Part 1 of Article 365-3 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, but, as we can see, even the detention of Zotko’s formal owner is unlikely to have a global impact on the situation.
We are waiting for a reaction from the new head of the Tax Service, Kravchenko. At the same time, we will see how virtuous the tax officer is.
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