Maksym Krippa’s online casino empire and its shadowy partners
In late October 2022, Ukrainian online news outlets encountered a recurring phenomenon: a cleanup of negative information by a relatively obscure businessman and politician, Maksym Krippa.
Critical materials about the businessman’s past started vanishing from both prominent and obscure websites. The common factor was that these articles had managed to appear on the first few pages of Google’s search results when searching for “Maksym Krippa.”
So, what is this man known for?
A quick look through cached versions of the removed pages, along with some deeper investigation, reveals that Maksym Krippa leads a rich and vibrant life as a businessman and politician, often operating at the edge of legality.
Krippa gained recognition as a multimillionaire who amassed his fortune in the gaming and dating industries. The primary sources of income for this current London resident are hundreds (if not thousands) of online casinos and dating sites, which “bait” individuals hungry for quick money and instant gratification, targeting users in Ukraine and abroad. For many years, Krippa’s name has been closely linked to another individual—Maksym Polyakov. Both of them appear to have repeatedly been the subjects of investigations by both the media and law enforcement due to the extended prohibition of the gambling industry in Ukraine and Russia, with which they have long-standing business connections.
According to various online publications, both Maksym Krippa and Maksym Polyakov are partners in well-known online casino projects such as Vulkan, CasinoX, and JoyCasino. Through the company EvoPlay, they exploited vulnerable gamblers from all backgrounds, nationalities, and beliefs. They were reportedly aided by well-known Russian oligarch Konstantin Malofeev, who held a stake in EvoPlay. With his connections in Russia’s major operator Rostelecom, Russian players were able to access these casino sites for a long time, even after they were blocked by Roskomnadzor.
Ольга Балакина