The editors
AV
Alexander Volkov
Editor-in-chief — editorial@don8play.ru
Alexander has worked in iGaming since 2016. Before Don8Play he was an editor in the analytics team of a large Russian-language comparison portal, where he was responsible for the assessment methodology and the brand database. At Don8Play he oversees the editorial policy as a whole, approves the ratings methodology and has the final say on disputed scores and on appeals from brands. He has negotiated with operators and knows how affiliate programmes work from the inside, which helps him keep editorial decisions independent.
Areas of expertise: assessment methodology, brand profiles (general), operator comparisons, disputed and borderline scores.
Signs off: brand profiles (general), rating pages, editorial statements, articles on responsible gambling together with the legal adviser.
ES
Elena Sokolova
Editor, Finance and Payments, payments expert — payments@don8play.ru
Elena graduated in economics from MGIMO University and has specialised in testing payment gateways in iGaming since 2019. In six years she has personally made more than 400 test transactions with cards, e-wallets and cryptocurrency on different platforms. At Don8Play she is responsible for the criteria we use to assess brands’ payment discipline: withdrawal speed, limits, KYC procedures, hidden fees and delays. Every score in the “Payments” part of our ratings goes through her checks.
Areas of expertise: payment systems, KYC, payout times, limits, crypto payments.
Signs off: withdrawal guides, verification guides, payout ratings, the “Payments” sections of brand profiles.
DR
Dmitry Reznov
Technical editor — tech@don8play.ru
Before moving into media, Dmitry was a back-end developer at a fintech start-up, which taught him how payment systems are built and where mobile apps hit their technical limits. At Don8Play he load-tests the brands’ apps and mobile sites, checks loading speed, connection stability in live games, two-factor authentication and whether self-exclusion features actually work. He is responsible for the technical audit in our Mystery Shopping protocol.
Areas of expertise: mobile apps, load testing, security, the technical side of UX.
Signs off: technical guides, mobile app reviews, the “Technical specifications” sections of brand profiles.
ML
Maria Lazareva
Editor, Bonuses and Product, bonus expert — content@don8play.ru
Maria graduated from the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics of Moscow State University. She uses her maths background to work out what bonus offers are really worth: she calculates the odds of clearing a given wagering requirement, assesses the RTP of slot machines and finds hidden restrictions in the rules. At Don8Play she owns the “Bonus policy” criterion of the ratings methodology and all material about the game range, game providers and live games.
Areas of expertise: bonus programmes, wagering requirements, RTP, game providers, live casino.
Signs off: bonus guides, slot reviews, bonus ratings, the “Bonuses” and “Game range” sections of brand profiles.
IB
Igor Belsky
Legal adviser — legal@don8play.ru
Igor is a practising lawyer with experience of Russia’s Federal Law No. 152-FZ (personal data) and Federal Law No. 244-FZ (state regulation of organising and conducting gambling). He advises the editors on how to read brands’ licence terms, analyses whether refusals to pay out are lawful and helps word our recommendations for players in disputes. Together with the editor-in-chief he signs off material on responsible gambling and the law.
Areas of expertise: Federal Laws No. 152-FZ and No. 244-FZ, operator licensing, disputes between players and brands, regulation.
Signs off: articles on the law, material on responsible gambling (with the editor-in-chief), the legal sections of brand profiles.