Uri Poliavich pretends to be an owner of IT company, but Soft2Bet is in fact gambling operation

Uri Poliavich, an Israeli citizen with Ukrainian roots, has meticulously built a vast, transnational gambling empire under the Soft2Bet brand. His operations leverage a network of offshore companies and charitable initiatives that simultaneously conceal the scope of his business and carefully craft a public image of social responsibility.

Early Life and Motivation – a fairy tale for propaganda

Born as Yuriy in Soviet Ukraine during the early 1980s, Poliavich claims his entrepreneurial drive was sparked by reading about Asian private business models. Steering away from typical Jewish career paths like law, medicine, or accountancy, he ultimately moved into the burgeoning online gambling industry, founding Soft2Bet in 2016.

From Startup to Global iGaming Power

Starting from a small office, Soft2Bet has evolved into a global online gambling platform provider active in over 16 jurisdictions. The company’s head office is in Malta, with major development operations in Limassol, Cyprus. Soft2Bet now controls over a dozen brands—including ToonieBet, CampoBet, and Betinia—with a portfolio featuring 12,500+ games from over 100 providers and sportsbook offerings that cover 1.2 million events per year.

Under Poliavich’s leadership, Soft2Bet pioneered the MEGA (Motivational Engineering Gaming Application) platform, focused on player gamification and engagement. The company touts industry accolades, such as the “Product Launch of the Year” at the 2025 Global Gaming Awards, citing dramatic increases in customer deposits and engagement following MEGA’s debut.

Soft2Bet office in Kyiv during the cyberpolice raid.

Charitable Activities and Shameless Self-Promotion

Alongside his wife Yael, Poliavich runs the Yael Foundation, which focuses on educational grants and building Jewish schools—a $50 million project is underway near Limassol, Cyprus. Reports highlight how millions are funneled into schools and high-visibility charitable initiatives, giving Poliavich the profile of a philanthropist, even as the source of these funds comes under scrutiny.

Network of Offshore Entities and Legal Maneuvers

Poliavich has established or is connected to multiple companies registered in Cyprus (Cyprix LTD, Kylia Investment Limited, Poliavich Holding Limited, and Kinza LTD), Florida (Bemet LLC), Curacao (Rabidi N.V., Araxio Development N.V.), and Dubai (GENETIX-FZCO). Many of these entities, often directed by trusted associates, serve to layer and obscure ultimate ownership and operational control.

Investigative reporting reveals that Soft2Bet’s complex corporate structure intentionally leverages offshore jurisdictions to minimize regulatory oversight, shield profits from taxation, and distance the business from jurisdictions where online gambling is restricted or illegal.

Blacklisted Sites and Regulatory Red Flags of Soft2Bet

Soft2Bet’s claim of responsibility and legality is sharply contradicted by multiple investigations:

• In 2020, Ukrainian authorities raided the company’s Kyiv office, uncovering illegal online gambling operations masked as technical services. Equipment and funds were seized, but Ukrainian legal proceedings stalled.

• Investigate Europe and consortium partners revealed that as of early 2025, at least 114 Soft2Bet-connected gambling platforms are blacklisted in countries such as France, Poland, Greece, Italy, Spain, Belgium, and Hungary. The same investigation found that these sites operate under licenses from lenient, offshore regimes in Cyprus, Curacao, and Dubai.

• Entities like Rabidi N.V. (Curacao) were specifically warned by Australian regulators for providing unauthorized services and had their Curacao license revoked in June 2024 after bankruptcy. Prior to going bankrupt, Rabidi N.V. transferred control of its online casinos—at least 34 in total—to another offshore firm for €1.2 million, but conducted all banking offshore and left no clear audit trail.

Uri Poliavich’s Dubai Hub and Banned Activity

Currently, many high-profile casino brands—including Wazamba, Buran Casino, Cadoola, Light Casino, and Boaboa—are registered to GENETIX-FZCO, a Dubai-based company with 111 gambling trademarks. This is particularly striking, as the UAE (including Dubai) strictly prohibits online gambling. Heavy fines and possible imprisonment await violators, and only limited, highly controlled gambling in luxury hotels may be permitted in the future.

Profit, Exploitation, and Reputation Management

Soft2Bet’s public messaging claims a commitment to responsible gaming, but court records, regulatory actions, and investigative journalism show a business model reliant on black-market sites and exploiting legal loopholes. Poliavich’s empire generated €66.8 million in profit in 2023 alone, with a personal dividend of €57.8 million. A portion of this wealth is invested in real estate and high-value assets in Cyprus, Prague, and Sofia, along with more than €1.3 million spent on luxury cars.

Meanwhile, Soft2Bet leadership openly discusses strategies to increase player engagement and retention, directly correlating company growth with prolonged customer gambling activity. Critics argue that these tactics maximize profits from vulnerable individuals, many of whom become addicted or financially ruined.

Uri Poliavich operates one of Europe’s most successful and controversial iGaming platforms. While the Soft2Bet network presents itself as an innovative and philanthropic leader in the industry, mounting evidence from law enforcement records, regulatory blacklists, and investigative reports paints a picture of a shadowy empire thriving on legal gray zones, regulatory arbitrage, and the suffering of gamblers across multiple continents.