Review of: 10/12/19 | News of: 10/12/19 | Sheet: 1/1

Increased risk of money laundering in gaming: +66% of reports

The gaming sector remains a target for money launderers, even though the regulatory safeguards, which will be strengthened by the Fifth EU Directive, are increasingly effective. Suspicious transaction reports (SORs) sent to the Bank of Italy's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) by gaming service providers increased by 66%, from 1.864 in the first half of 2018 to 3.102 in the same period this year.

The value of SOS-related transactions also grew rapidly in the two periods examined, rising from 85,4 to 250 million euros (+192,7%). This is the scenario that emerged from the report by Emiliano Marvulli, an official from the Revenue Agency's Office for the Prevention of Tax Illegal Activities, during the roundtable organized in Rome by the "European School of Banking Management."

As regards gaming, Marvulli illustrated a practical example of anomalous use of video lottery machines (VLT), with a fraudulent scheme involving foreign companies, Italian businesses and cash.

In addition to video lotteries, which have been specifically addressed in the Customs Agency's anti-money laundering guidelines, other risk profiles emerge from the activities of unlicensed betting agencies, whose players' stakes are collected in cash or via checks, without undergoing AML checks.

Bingo halls continue to be a sector of interest for mafia organizations, as does the business revolving around horse racing betting. Finally, there is the practice of "laundering" money through fake lottery and competition winnings, purchasing the winning ticket from winners at inflated prices, in order to justify proceeds subject to investigation or seizure.

A few days ago, the government approved the legislative decree updating the Italian anti-money laundering legislation for the recipients of the obligations: among the measures, the due diligence, the ban on anonymous electronic money products and a series of tools available to financial authorities to mitigate the risk.