PIN-UP Global has issued a strong response to the actions of Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), accusing the agency of using wartime sanctions against its business.

The international tech company continues to defend its position amid ongoing accusations from the SBI, which suspects its Ukrainian subsidiary, PIN-UP Ukraine (UKR Game Technology LLC), of alleged financial ties to Russia.

In February, the SBI charged PIN-UP Ukraine CEO Ihor Zotko with abuse of office and high treason. Following this, the company’s assets in Ukraine were frozen, and its operations suspended.

In an official statement, PIN-UP Global rejected all accusations as unfounded and stressed that such measures undermine confidence in Ukraine’s business environment: “ The sanctions imposed by Ukrainian authorities, following unsubstantiated accusations against our partner in Ukraine and the launch of court proceedings, were, unfortunately, to be expected.”

PIN-UP Global has expressed concern about the growing use of Ukraine’s sanctions mechanism to exert pressure on businesses, a trend the company believes is troubling the international business community.

“Regrettably, in recent years, the sanctions mechanism in Ukraine has increasingly been used as a tool to apply pressure on businesses, and this extends beyond the gambling sector,” the group stated.

Marina Ilina, CEO of PIN-UP Global, sharply criticized the investigation initiated by the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), calling it “absurd” and “dangerous.” She warned that such actions could set a dangerous precedent in which standard commercial operations, such as royalty payments between IT companies, might be classified as national security threats.

“These accusations do not stand up to criticism. I am a Ukrainian and openly support my country. All the activities of my company are transparent and can be easily verified,”  Ilina emphasized.

The company maintains that the disputed transactions were related to a software licensing agreement between its European entity, GuruFlow Team LTD, and its Ukrainian subsidiary.

PIN-UP Global firmly denies any allegations of ties to Russia and insists that no financial transfers were made to any Russian entities.

Moreover, the company has repeatedly emphasized that the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) has failed to provide evidence or reasonable grounds for launching an investigation into its Ukrainian subsidiaries.

“We intend to show the European market, through our case, how Ukrainian law actually works—whether it truly protects businesses from raiding or facilitates it,” the company stated, underlining its intention to use the legal proceedings as a public test of Ukraine’s institutional integrity.

Despite mounting government pressure, the company has seen significant growth since the start of the war: its workforce has expanded by 350%, now totaling around 4,000 employees across seven international offices.

PIN-UP Global’s leadership views the current situation not only as a fight to protect its own business reputation but also as a warning to the international community that actions taken by the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) could seriously damage Ukraine’s image as a technologically advanced and investment-friendly country.

“These practices only undermine trust in Ukraine, its regulatory institutions, and the officials who, on the one hand, encourage investment in a country that urgently needs it to withstand military aggression, and on the other, block companies that are tax leaders and impose sanctions against them,” the company noted.

Against the backdrop of the war, the Ukrainian government has launched reforms in its gambling regulation system. In March, a new oversight body—PlayCity—was established, and both the Rada and the Cabinet of Ministers began working on amendments to the 2020 law on state regulation of the gambling sector.

The changes aim to enhance centralized oversight of financial operations and customer interactions, signaling the government’s shift toward stricter regulation of the gambling industry. Awaiting the implementation of new regulations, PIN-UP Global emphasized: “We will not allow the reputation of a brand that has demonstrated transparency and reliability for more than nine years to be discredited.”

Source