The Storm International gambling company has opened the Shangri La casino in the Kharkiv luxury hotel of Alexander Yaroslavsky,Kharkiv Palace 5 *. Michael Boettcher, Shangri La and Storm Internationalfounder, spoke about future plans and format of cooperation during his speech at the International Investment Forum “Kharkiv: Development and Investments”.
“We are friends with the owner of the Kharkiv Palace 5 * hotel and I decided to open a casino here. TheShangri La international casino is already operating in Kyiv, Shangri La in Kharkiv has become the second casino of the chain in Ukraine,” said Michael Boettcher and thanked Alexander Yaroslavsky for the invitation.
Michael Boettcher is optimistic about business development in Ukraine.
“My experience is not bad, I first came to Ukraine in 1991 and have seen great changes since then. The workforce here is great. I love this country and am glad that a decision has been made in Ukraine to legalize the gambling business,” said the British businessman.
At the same time, the founder of the Shangri La casino network considers the Ukrainian system of state regulation of this business to be imperfect.Darren Keane, Shangri La CEO, also thinks taxation needs some work. In their opinion, the relevant Ukrainian laws should work clearly and correctly, without restricting the rights of investors, because it is the difficulties with tax legislation that impede the movement of the market.
“The laws and regulations governing the gambling market are very complex, plus high taxes, the payment for obtaining a license is also extremely high. We pay taxes on every table in the casino, and we pay a high military fee. Income taxes are everywhere, but there are many other taxes. You can’t tax the entire industry too much, investors won’t come to you! For example, in Germany taxes on gambling business are also large, where the government receives 7 times more than me, and it is not profitable for me to work like that. If it is the same in Ukraine, the business will not come here. And if you create a comfortable environment for our business, increase your tourism potential,” said Boettcher.
Darren Keane, Shangri La CEO, sees great potential for the development of the gaming industry in Ukraine. With a well-thought-out tax system, both the state and business will benefit.
Mr.Boettcher also drew attention to the problem of the shadow sector in the gambling business:
“There are many illegal casinos. They close after verification on Monday and reopen on Tuesday. Under these conditions, foreign investors will not come to your country. If the business is illegal, it does not pay taxes. I don’t know how much illegal complexes earn, but it’s billions. Help us and we will help you. Here we talked about partnership so that we can be reliable partners. ”
“The best entertainment in the world can be in Ukraine. Foreigners love casinos. And we are ready to invest, build a mega-casino here, but on the condition that the government will help. When you invest millions, you hope that there will be no delays,” the businessman emphasized.
