On August 26, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine accepted Hennadii Novikov's resignation from the position of head of the state agency 'PlayCity' — the central regulator of the gambling and lottery sector. The corresponding decision is recorded in Government Decree No. 842, as reported by RBC-Ukraine. Formally, Novikov submitted his resignation on his own initiative back in mid-July, the day after the government's resignation, but the Cabinet officially accepted it only more than a month later.
Who will temporarily lead the regulator
According to a separate decree, Oleksandr Tomashuk has been appointed acting head of 'PlayCity'. He currently holds the position of Deputy Chairman of the Agency for Digital Development, Digital Transformation and Digitization. Thus, the key regulator of the gaming market has temporarily ended up in the hands of a representative of the digital vertical, which may signal the government's intention to strengthen the technological and control framework over the industry.
The history of 'PlayCity's creation
The state agency 'PlayCity' was established in March 2025 as the central executive body responsible for forming and implementing state policy in the sphere of organizing and conducting gambling and in the lottery sector. It replaced the liquidated Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (KRAIL). In April 2025, the Cabinet of Ministers appointed Hennadii Novikov to the post of head of the agency, who, according to sources, held the position for about 16 months.
Contradictory data
There are discrepancies in the public domain regarding the approach to the personnel decision. As early as July, the head of the parliamentary committee on financial, tax and customs policy, Danylo Hetmanets, proposed holding an open competition for the position of head of 'PlayCity', to which, by his design, representatives of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and international experts were to be involved. Meanwhile, the government effectively bypassed this procedure by appointing an acting head without a competitive selection. In addition, there is an inconsistency in the chronology in the sources: Novikov submitted his application in mid-July, whereas the Cabinet accepted it only on August 26, which raises the question of which exact composition of the government (given the July resignation) signed Decree No. 842.
Thus, the change in leadership of 'PlayCity' is taking place against the backdrop of the ongoing restructuring of the institutional framework for regulating the gambling business in Ukraine and remains a subject of debate over the transparency of personnel decisions in an industry sensitive to corruption risks.
