iGaming Business – Russian president Vladimir Putin has submitted a draft bill to parliament to designate the seceded Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea as a legal gambling zone. As reported by iGaming Business last month, Russian officials were reported to be considering a proposal to introduce a gambling zone with casinos and hotels to the region. According to the Wall Street Journal newspaper, Putin submitted the bill on Monday in the hope of pushing forward with these plans. Sergei Aksyonov, acting leader of Crimea, told the Itar-Tass news agency last week that if the bill does pass then the region plans…

Bloomberg – Russian officials are weighing a proposal to create a gambling zone with casinos and hotels in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula annexed from Ukraine, according to four people with direct knowledge of the planning. Officials discussed the option at a March 21 meeting led by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information isn’t public. Russia’s ministries of economy, finance and regional development have an April 15 deadline to present a plan for the gambling project with spending and revenue estimates, the people said. Russia is seeking to make Crimea…