Unlicensed casino schemes involve 24 Estonian firms with owners from Latvia
An investigation has found that at least 24 Estonia-registered companies, whose owners and directors are from Latvia, are part of a network tied to unlicensed online casinos that generate tens of billions of euros across Europe. The firms are reportedly used to dodge taxes and launder income.
Unlicensed online casinos operating across Europe generate tens of billions of euros each year, and a dedicated support industry has emerged around this money flow, helping casino owners avoid taxes and give their earnings an appearance of legality.
According to gathered information, one key node of this infrastructure is located in Estonia, where at least 24 companies linked to unlicensed casino operations are registered. Notably, the owners and directors of these firms are not Estonian nationals but residents of Latvia.
A chain for legalizing income
The scheme involving these firms allows casino operators to channel money through formally legitimate business entities, creating the appearance that the income stems from lawful commercial activity. This complicates the work of tax authorities and regulators, since the actual funds originate from operations that are not licensed in any European Union country.
The Latvian connection
Although the companies are registered in Estonia, their beneficial owners and top officials come from Latvia. This suggests that the money-laundering network tied to unlicensed casinos is not confined to a single country but instead makes use of the business environments of several Baltic states, making tracing and establishing accountability more difficult.
The question of combating unlicensed online casinos and dismantling the associated money-laundering schemes remains relevant across the European Union, as such activity both deprives national budgets of tax revenue and poses risks to the transparency of the financial system.
