Can war make a country legalize gambling

[Akbarkoe]

Online gambling has been illegal in Russia since 2009, but because of the growing budget deficit brought by on going war against Ukraine, officials are proposing to legalize online gambling.

But even if online gambling is illegal, the industry still made a $39 billion profit; just imagine the profit from taxes it would make if gambling were legal.

What do you think, will Putin allow the legalization of gambling just to sustain the economy, and sustain the war against Ukraine

In an effort to bolster state revenues amid a growing budget deficit, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov has proposed the legalization of online casinos. The plan, presented to President Vladimir Putin, aims to provide a new source of income to offset the rising costs of the war against Ukraine. Siluanov’s suggestion, reported by Kommersant, aims to draw illegal online gamblers into the legal market, while also introducing stringent safeguards to curb addiction.

Russia Considers Legalizing Online Casinos Amid Financial Strain

If that is one of the best solutions in your country then I think Putin does not have many options to have additional income from online casinos, let's say the online casinos he builds reach the international market then the income will definitely be very extensive, legalization is definitely possible in your country, but if Putin has other options to cover his annual income deficit then surely that way is better than casinos and will not legalize them.

[icebar]

At a time when there is a shortage of money, governments will definitely allow gambling platforms to improve their financial situation. Moreover, if these gambling platforms are so financially prosperous at a crucial moment, then it is certain that governments will definitely have a different perspective on it. Moreover, I think that the countries that are in such a situation with these platforms will suffer more the longer they delay. Although it will completely depend on the policy of the government of that country, but if they reconsider the issue of profit and loss, then they will definitely try to legalize gambling platforms.

[serjent05]

The answer is that it depends on the country.  As I read @OP's post, I believe it is not the war that makes a country legalize gambling, but the need for funds to support their ongoing war campaign.  If Russia has a strong fund, I doubt they will change their stance on gambling.  If they have enough funds for war, legalizing gambling would be the last thing they would do.

The person who proposed the legalization of gambling is probably out of their wits and sees gambling as the fastest way to earn money for their war campaign.

What do you think, will Putin allow the legalization of gambling just to sustain the economy, and sustain the war against Ukraine

This is possible if they can't find a solution to strengthen their funds.  but of course, we do not know what Putin is thinking, so any answer here is just an assumption and speculation.

[LastKiss]

Yeah it can and I think this will be great for Russia. People will have more options for entertainment, while the government will earn more income from taxes. However, it is still a double edged sword for both the people and the country. If gambling is done recklessly, it can create internal chaos such as stealing, scamming and other crimes.

The government should think carefully when implementing the new regulations, because if the rules are not strong enough to control gambling activities, they will not provide a real solution to the problem.

[Orpichukwu]

If they have calculated the risk involved, then I don't see why they should not legalise it after all. Even when it's not legal, citizens from here still gamble offshore. Why can't they just make things legal and take proper tax, which will help the country's economy and not just help fund war equipment?

[Lida93]

Mainly what pushes government of a nation to accept the legalization of gambling both online and inland gambling is due to the huge income in tax the government stands to profit from as it is in their loss not legalising because even as a prescribed illegal activity their citizen still finds ways to gamble, which makes them vulnerable to bad actors in the industry whi takes advantage of the ban in their country to rob them off their funds. And they can't register any complain being aware of the offense of engaging in a ban activity.

[Hispo]

If they have calculated the risk involved, then I don't see why they should not legalise it after all. Even when it's not legal, citizens from here still gamble offshore. Why can't they just make things legal and take proper tax, which will help the country's economy and not just help fund war equipment?

It is a fact people gamble and will continue to gamble regardless gambling being legal in their countries or not. But it would be up to their government and their lawmakers to legalize and make the country to profit from gambling taxation. It greatly depends on why gambling had been made illegal in the first place.

For example, in Muslim majority country there is nothing which can be discussed in order to have gambling legal on those territories, because religion is more important for those people than some extra government revenue, in the case of states which are not religiously inclined, like Ukraine it makes complete sense to seek for other ways to fund their country in order to survive such a horrible war in the long term.

[impulse709]

Mainly what pushes government of a nation to accept the legalization of gambling both online and inland gambling is due to the huge income in tax the government stands to profit from as it is in their loss not legalising because even as a prescribed illegal activity their citizen still finds ways to gamble, which makes them vulnerable to bad actors in the industry whi takes advantage of the ban in their country to rob them off their funds. And they can't register any complain being aware of the offense of engaging in a ban activity.

People get into gambling regardless of whether the act is legal or not, and this makes them an easy target of crooks and fraudsters who use the prohibition to their advantage. The governments are actually missing on to the possible tax revenue and citizens are taking risks with no legal cover. With both land-based and online gambling being legitimized, the state will be in control of the industry and have opportunity to protect the players and collect taxes. Governments can also force legalization, in particular, in times of war or economic crisis, as another type of revenue to restore order and stability.

[m2017]

When the budget is short on funds, the government doesn't shy away from inventing some pretty ingenious ways to collect taxes. Just remember the old Roman story about the toilet tax ("pecunia non olet"). So, a gambling tax doesn't seem out of the ordinary. Nothing personal, just "we need your money".

The funny thing is, as soon as it becomes profitable (or necessary) for the government, the laws magically change their moral direction (from evild to good). This is food for thought for bitcoiners for the future: countries where bitcoin is currently illegal could easily become legal in the future, but be prepared to pay taxes on it.

[Samlucky O]

i dont know how possible this is but i think from the explanation here, it may be implemented or legalized if truly it gives more revenue even without being legalized. my problem is that if they ban gambling and later legalize or make it public, how will they be able to handle or control gambling addiction because it seems to me like the issue of not legalizing this gambling is to avoid abuse or addiction, and now if that is done will they be able to handle the rate of gambling addiction in Russia? for me it  would have been nice if they just play along and make this profit illegal to avoid abuse of it than making it public.

[Grace333]

i dont know how possible this is but i think from the explanation here, it may be implemented or legalized if truly it gives more revenue even without being legalized. my problem is that if they ban gambling and later legalize or make it public, how will they be able to handle or control gambling addiction because it seems to me like the issue of not legalizing this gambling is to avoid abuse or addiction, and now if that is done will they be able to handle the rate of gambling addiction in Russia? for me it  would have been nice if they just play along and make this profit illegal to avoid abuse of it than making it public.

There’s a possibility that Russia might legalize gambling because the tax that can be generated from gambling is enticing and the funds gotten from the tax will be able to help in sponsor their war. But that’s if they are out of funds to back up their war against Ukraine, and also if they’ve sold off all their natural resources, so far Russia is one of the country with abundance of natural resources like, platinum, Gold, copper, gold, iron ore nickel and natural gases, until all this are exhausted, I don’t think Putin will want to legalize gambling. He ban gambling because he was trying to protect his citizen, some person are becoming addicted to it, and frequenting it beyond caution.

[nimogsm]

I don't think that's possible, as it poses too many risks for citizens themselves. Soldiers who sign contracts receive good salaries, and online gambling can drain all of a player's savings, with consequences that can vary greatly. I think special gambling zones will appear, something like Monaco, but it's difficult to say what the demand will be.

[TopTort777]

Not sure if they (Russia) really need to legalize online gambling, because those who want to gamble, found ways to access online gambling platform, avoid paying taxes, gamble in telegram and so on. It is stupid to think that after legalization, gamblers would run to pay taxes. Ever seen a gambler who wants to share his winnings with government? I dont Ever seen a business that wants to pay taxes and pay them in full amount? I dont

[AbuBhakar]

The government will do almost anything to collect taxes, especially during a war. The question is, will anyone still gamble in that situation? They will likely prioritize what is in their stomachs to survive the war. Anyone in that situation would probably prefer to save food. Where will you get the money? If your country is in a dangerous situation, you will not be able to enjoy it. If you enjoy it, it's just a sign of your selfishness, showing that you don't care about others.

[viljy]

This is not proposed because of a lack of money in the budget. In fact, they (the government) are drowning in money. In addition, if desired, you can print Everest out of money, because the monetization of the economy is one of the lowest in the world. And why is it necessary? It's very simple - so that there are more people who have lost everything to gambling. Well, it's easy to guess for what purpose people who are in dire need of money and want to earn money are in demand in the country.

[SuperBitMan]

I really don’t understand why some countries usually ban gambling, I don’t see anything wrong in gambling. The only wrong thing that I see in gambling is when you are addicted to it and addiction is not something you can fight as a government. It is something that every individual have to fight it on their own, there are other things people are addicted to, for example some set of people who are addicted to playing video games online there are people who are also addicted to watching movies. There are people who are also addicted to sex and pornography and you can’t stop it all you can do is to tell people the side effects of addiction.
If the Russia government knows what they’re doing, they will make it legal because there’s nothing wrong with it and they can use it to boost their economy even now that gambling is illegal in Russia there are people that are still in Russia and are gambling secretly using VPN.

[Lida93]

Mainly what pushes government of a nation to accept the legalization of gambling both online and inland gambling is due to the huge income in tax the government stands to profit from as it is in their loss not legalising because even as a prescribed illegal activity their citizen still finds ways to gamble, which makes them vulnerable to bad actors in the industry whi takes advantage of the ban in their country to rob them off their funds. And they can't register any complain being aware of the offense of engaging in a ban activity.

People get into gambling regardless of whether the act is legal or not, and this makes them an easy target of crooks and fraudsters who use the prohibition to their advantage. The governments are actually missing on to the possible tax revenue and citizens are taking risks with no legal cover. With both land-based and online gambling being legitimized, the state will be in control of the industry and have opportunity to protect the players and collect taxes. Governments can also force legalization, in particular, in times of war or economic crisis, as another type of revenue to restore order and stability.

With government coming into the scene it would drive away a lot of fraudulent gambling platforms and giving the genuine ones conductive environment to operate in a healthy competition, and even reduce extortionate practices by casinos, and with the regulations on ground legitimising AML policy it will mitigate all tricks of money laundering through casinos. So while the government are making effort to raise revenue through the gambling companies they're as well safeguarding their citizens and ensuring quality service too.

[Marvelockg]

What do you think, will Putin allow the legalization of gambling just to sustain the economy, and sustain the war against Ukraine

legalizing gambling as a means of bring a dyeing economy back to her foot is something that is somewhat like doing something that has the tendency of helping and at the same time hurting you. gambling can build up the revenue of a country through the tax that is gotten from it but at the same time, if you consider other things like the effect it has in terms of reducing the extent of productivity of people that get distracted through gambling, you will also see that the negative side also has a lot of implications that is attached to it.

[bakasabo]

There is a saying in Russian language, "All is fair in war." On one hand, if there is really need, country could legalize gambling if that would really help them to win or get a significant advantage. If the idea of legalizing online casinos is to create another money source to fill treasure, then it is not a best solution. If it becomes a money source during war, then it will continue to be a money source after war, but there must have been reasons to make it illegal in the beginning. It mean that it will go against previous decision and will make controversies later.