Against the backdrop of the growth of the illegal gambling market, the ESBU’s performance in this area has more than halved
Between January and April 2026, detectives referred only four indictments to the courts relating to the unlawful operation of casinos or the organisation of gambling. Furthermore, according to official figures, there has been a sharp decline in the number of criminal groups uncovered and cases involving crimes against legitimate businesses.
This is evidenced by statistics from the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.
According to the report on the work of the pre-trial investigation bodies, between January and April 2026, the Economic Security Bureau (ESBU) referred only four indictments to court under Article 203-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – illegal activities involving the organisation or conduct of gambling and lotteries. A further five criminal proceedings were closed due to lack of evidence or lack of elements of a crime.
By way of comparison, during the same period in 2025, 10 such indictments concerning 16 individuals were referred to court.
At the same time, according to data from the international research company KANTAR, the illegal gambling market in Ukraine has grown from 52.1% to 56.7%. Its current volume has exceeded 61.6 billion UAH.
There has also been a noticeable decline in the number of cases concerning the legalisation of funds obtained by criminal means. In the first four months of 2026, 14 indictments were sent to court, whereas during the same period in 2025, there were 23.
Despite statements by the director of the ESBU regarding the priority of protecting business and creating fair conditions for competition, detectives are significantly less likely to uncover illegal production facilities linked to the counterfeiting of well-known brands.
This year, only four indictments against nine individuals were sent to court for the unlawful use of a trademark, trade name or qualified indication of origin (Article 229 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Last year, this figure was almost three times higher – 13 indictments against 22 individuals were referred to court.
The number of cases referred to court concerning official forgery has also fallen significantly: 1 criminal proceeding and 2 individuals in 2026 compared to 6 cases and 8 individuals in 2025; forgery of documents submitted for the state registration of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs – 24 criminal proceedings currently compared to 34 last year.
Furthermore, according to the Unified Report on Criminal Offences, during the period in question, ESBU detectives investigated only 4 cases of fraud involving financial resources (16 in 2025) and 67 cases under Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (121 in 2025).
Overall, the total number of cases in which an indictment was sent to court has also decreased: 83 criminal proceedings this year compared to 135 last year.
It is worth noting the reduction in the number of cases involving criminal groups. After all, according to Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi, it is precisely large-scale economic schemes that are the Bureau’s focus. However, the number of indictments in such proceedings has now fallen to 10, compared to 24 last year.
With almost the same number of criminal proceedings, the Economic Security Bureau’s detectives have also seen changes in the figures for established and recovered losses:
- losses established between January and April 2026 – 1.5 billion UAH
- losses established between January and April 2025 – 2.4 billion UAH
- losses recovered during January–April 2026 – 1.2 billion UAH
- compensation for losses during January–April 2025 – 1.7 billion UAH
The number of criminal proceedings investigated within three months also decreased, whilst the value of seized assets remained virtually unchanged.
It is worth noting that the deterioration in the Economic Security Bureau’s performance occurred despite the Bureau’s staffing levels remaining virtually unchanged – around 1,200 both last year and this year – and increased funding: 2.18 billion UAH in 2026 compared to 1.8 billion in 2025.
It should be recalled that Ukrainian MP Danylo Getmantsev previously drew attention to the ineffectiveness of the Economic Security Bureau. In particular, he noted that following the reorganisation of the ESBU, many questions have arisen regarding the fight against the shadow economy and the provision of a level playing field for business, as entire sectors of the economy remain un-shadowed and economic crimes continue.
