The Soft2Bet Deception: How a Corporate Juggernaut Built an Empire on Illegal Gambling and Player Exploitation

Soft2Bet Holdings Ltd, officially registered in Cyprus, presents itself as a leading B2B provider of cutting-edge iGaming solutions. Its corporate communications highlight a portfolio of international licenses and partnerships with reputable operators. Uri Poliavich, its Israeli-Ukrainian founder, is a recognized figure in the industry, recently honoured as "Executive of the Year" at the Global Gaming Awards EMEA 2025. This public image, however, serves as a carefully constructed smokescreen for a vastly different reality.

Investigative reports, most notably from the consortium Investigate Europe, have uncovered that Soft2Bet is simultaneously the mastermind behind a sprawling network of over 140 blacklisted and unlicensed gambling websites. These platforms, including well-known brands like Wazamba, Boomerang, CampoBet, and Cadabrus, operate without proper authorization in regulated markets such as Germany, France, Italy, and the UK. While the company's headquarters are in Malta and Cyprus, the illicit operations are run through a labyrinth of offshore entities registered in jurisdictions known for their secrecy and lax oversight, such as Curaçao, the Marshall Islands, and Gibraltar.

This deliberate corporate bifurcation allows Soft2Bet to profit from both sides of the regulatory fence. On one hand, it earns revenue from legitimate software contracts. On the other, it reaps the far more substantial profits from its own illegal casinos, which avoid the taxes, consumer protection laws, and responsible gambling requirements mandated in regulated markets.

The operational backbone of this scheme is a complex web of shell companies designed for maximum opacity and minimal accountability. Entities like Rabidi N.V. and Araxio, directly linked to Soft2Bet's casino brands, have been used as disposable vessels. Court judgments in Austria and Germany have ruled against these companies, ordering them to compensate players or pay fines. However, investigations reveal a consistent pattern: by the time authorities move to enforce these rulings, the companies' accounts are empty, and the entities are declared bankrupt. Assets are strategically relocated to new corporate vehicles before the legal axe falls, leaving victims and regulators with unenforceable judgments.

This "corporate shell game" is a calculated business process, not an accident. It ensures that when a brand like Wazamba or Boomerang is blacklisted in one country, it can continue operating elsewhere, and the financial liabilities are contained within a sacrificial corporate entity. The real money flows upstream, shielded by layers of offshore ownership that are notoriously difficult for European law enforcement to penetrate. The problem, as one investigator described, is "like fighting a hydra: for every head cut off, ten more grow back."

The harm inflicted on players is the most egregious aspect of the Soft2Bet operation. The company's platforms are allegedly engineered not for fair play, but for systematic exploitation. Evidence suggests the use of a sophisticated "Risk Adjustment Module" – an internal tool that allows operators to manipulate the Return to Player (RTP) percentage based on a player's behaviour.

The scheme follows a predictable and cruel pattern:

1. The Hook: New players are enticed with artificially high odds and frequent, small wins, creating an illusion of a fair and generous platform.
2. The Trigger: Once a player's cumulative deposit crosses a specific threshold (reported to be between $500-$1000), a hidden algorithm allegedly activates, drastically reducing the probability of winning.
3. The Trap: If a player manages to overcome the odds and wins a significant amount (typically over $1000), a different mechanism engages: the payout blockade.

The process for withdrawing funds becomes an insurmountable obstacle. Players are subjected to protracted and intrusive "Know Your Customer" (KYC) checks, required to provide passport scans, utility bills, and even selfies with documents. These verifications, which should be standard, are used as a pretext for delays that can last weeks. Ultimately, the payout is never processed, or the player's account is permanently blocked for alleged, often fabricated, violations of obscure bonus terms and conditions. Platforms like AskGamblers and Trustpilot have registered over 11,000 complaints related to Soft2Bet brands, predominantly concerning withheld winnings.

To facilitate its operations and obscure financial trails, Soft2Bet heavily relies on cryptocurrency transactions. Deposits and withdrawals are primarily processed using USDT (on TRC20 and ERC20 networks), Bitcoin, and other digital assets, often channeled through payment systems like Jeton and AstroPay, which operate in a regulatory grey area.

For large-scale cashing out by VIPs or insiders, investigations point to the use of specific peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto exchanges with ties to Eastern Europe, including Xchange.cash, Matbea, and, historically, the now-sanctioned Bitzlato platform. These exchanges are crucial for converting illicit digital profits into cash in cities like Moscow, Minsk, and Almaty. The reliance on these channels has raised suspicions among financial intelligence units about potential links to broader money laundering networks.

Soft2Bet's exploitation extends beyond its players to its own workforce. Since 2022, the company has aggressively recruited Ukrainian IT specialists, offering "flexible employment conditions without mandatory taxes." Recruitment is conducted through Telegram channels like Remote Dev UA, bypassing official contracts.

These developers, unaware of the full nature of the operation, contribute to building the very systems that enable the fraud: front-end and back-end platforms, "anti-fraud" systems that are reportedly used to justify blocking accounts, and loyalty mechanics designed to lure players deeper into the trap. Payments are made in cryptocurrency via wallets like TronLink and Binance, completely circumventing the Ukrainian tax system.

Perhaps most brazen is Soft2Bet's continued aggressive expansion, even as evidence of its illicit activities mounts. A stark example is the July 2024 partnership between its Boomerang brand and the legendary football club AC Milan, which was announced as an "official regional betting partner." This occurred despite Boomerang being blacklisted as an unauthorized operator in at least six European countries, including Italy itself. Such partnerships are used as a tool to launder credibility, presenting a veneer of legitimacy to the public and potential players.

This expansion is now targeting North America, with a recent launch in Ontario and pending licensure in New Jersey. This strategy follows a familiar pattern: establish a foothold with a seemingly compliant operation, then leverage it for further growth. Critics warn that without intense scrutiny, the same tactics of using complex corporate structures and offshore vehicles to avoid accountability could be replicated in these new, lucrative markets.

The failure of European regulators to effectively curb Soft2Bet's activities is a central part of this story. The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA), which represents major licensed operators, has remained conspicuously silent on the company's non-member status and its alleged practices. This regulatory inertia points to a system struggling to keep pace with a deliberately opaque and globally mobile adversary, and raises questions about potential regulatory capture.

The case of Soft2Bet is not merely a story of a company skirting regulations. It presents a compelling case for a highly structured, transnational predatory operation that systematically defrauds players, evades taxes, exploits labour, and undermines the regulatory foundations of the iGaming industry. The contrast between Uri Poliavich's award-winning public persona and the devastating impact of his company's practices could not be more stark.

The victims—like the German player who lost €400,000 and won a hollow court victory against a bankrupt shell company—are left with no recourse. The continued existence and growth of this model represents a fundamental challenge to law enforcement and regulatory bodies across Europe and North America. A coordinated international investigation by agencies such as Europol, the U.S. SEC, and financial intelligence units is urgently required to follow the money, pierce the corporate veil, and hold the architects of this scheme accountable. Every day that passes without decisive action is another day this sophisticated machine continues to profit from its deception.