Armenia took a decisive step in its gambling-market reform on August 13, 2026, selecting Random Systems to develop a new real-time gambling monitoring center that will connect casinos, sportsbooks, lotteries and online gambling platforms to the country’s state supervision infrastructure.
The project stems from Armenia’s Law on Regulation of Gambling Activities, adopted on June 12, 2024, which created the concept of a monitoring center capable of recording information on players, bets, winnings, gambling products, transactions and operational events while performing risk analysis and assessment. The law also requires player identification and provides the framework for participation restrictions.
The reform is being driven at government level under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. The selection procedure was prepared through an interagency commission established by Prime Minister Resolution No. 670-L of July 28, 2025. Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Khachatryan played a central role in the process and had previously stressed that gambling generates a significant share of state-budget revenue and requires stronger administrative control. Armenia’s current government structure confirms Pashinyan and Khachatryan remain in office in August 2026.
Tigran Khachatryan
On August 14, 2025, the government approved a competitive operator-selection procedure based on combined quality-and-cost criteria. The formal request for proposals was published on April 13, 2026 by the interagency tender commission. The successful bidder is required to establish a new Armenian entity, while the State Revenue Committee (SRC) intends to sign a 15-year contract with the operator. The operator will be financed by companies active in the gambling sector rather than directly through the state budget. The SRC is the principal supervisory authority and is headed by Eduard Hakobyan, Chairman since November 28, 2024. The government also lists Vrej Mkhitaryan as First Deputy Chairman and Karen Tamazyan, Rafael Gevorgyan and Hamlet Sahakyan as deputy chairmen.
Eduard Hakobyan
The new model is designed to shift Armenia away from supervision based largely on post-event declarations toward continuous technological traceability, giving authorities direct access to operational data for fiscal and regulatory oversight.
Gevorg Papoyan
The Ministry of Economy, headed by Gevorg Papoyan, also plays a role in the reform. On April 16, 2026, it introduced rules requiring verification that bank accounts or payment cards used to fund gambling accounts belong to the actual player, strengthening KYC, payment transparency and AML controls. Papoyan has served as Minister of Economy since March 2024 and remains in office in August 2026. Further participation restrictions were adopted on June 17, 2026, followed by additional inspection-related provisions on July 3. The SRC had already introduced new mandatory lottery reporting formats through Order No. 567-N of May 21, 2026.
The monitoring operator will collect and analyse market data covering bets, winnings, gaming products and events, while the SRC retains enforcement and supervisory powers. Armenian legislation also allows the operator-selection decision to be challenged in court within two months of publication or formal notification. Official sources consulted have not yet disclosed the contract value or final implementation timetable, but they do confirm the intended 15-year operating agreement and sector-funded financing model.
