Belarus Rolls Out National Slot Machine Registry in Gambling Regulation Overhaul

The government of Belarus will launch a national registry of slot machines as part of a series of major reforms to the country’s gambling industry.

In a post on its official Telegram channel, the government announced that its reforms will take effect on March 11, following the Prime Minister’s approval of a cabinet proposal.

The proposal followed a decree from President Aleksandr Lukashenko last year, which called for the launch of the registry. Lukashenko’s decree also noted that only license-holding, Minsk-based firms should accept cryptocurrency as a payment tool on betting platforms or pay winnings in cryptocurrency.

Under Belarusian law, all crypto service providers are required to operate within the confines of a government-supervised complex known as Hi-Tech Park.

Belarus Gambling Reforms: No More Gambling on Credit

Lukashenko stated that “individuals seeking to take part in games of chance” must “only do so using their own money.”

The new rules also require brick-and-mortar casinos and gambling operators to maintain a minimum balance of 4.05 million Belarusian rubles (approximately $1.4 million) in their bank accounts. This will ensure they stay solvent and can pay winnings and taxes without going into debt, the government said.

For online casinos and web-based bookmakers, the minimum reserve fund amount will be 900,000 Belarusian rubles, equivalent to approximately $306,000.

The new regulations also set out operating procedures for a “dedicated computerized cash register system.” This, the government says, will allow regulators to monitor casino-related financial transactions. Minsk will also create a new watchdog to track these transactions and monitor suspicious-looking payments.

Casinos, both online and offline, will also need to verify their patrons’ identification documents.

Minsk has also banned bettors from using more than one account on gambling platforms or placing bets via unauthorized “third parties.”

Domestic gambling companies have been barred from providing electronic credit to their patrons. Lukashenko’s decree, meanwhile, set out a range of measures aimed at “identifying and eliminating criminal schemes in the gambling sector.”

Belarus’ Rise in Gambling Ads

Last year, social media users lamented the fact that Belarusian public spaces are becoming awash with gambling ads for betting services and casinos.

A TikTok user in Minsk complained that the large display unit on the Belarusian National Library building had been showing advertisements for a gambling firm. Gambling ads also regularly appear on screens in public areas near major Minsk railway stations, prompting complaints from citizens.

In November last year, police in the capital charged a Belarusian crypto advocate with spending hundreds of thousands of dollars of his investors’ money at Minsk casinos.