Jan.01, 2010, 03:26am IST

Money launderers will not use the casino route, said members of the Association of Offshore Casinos (AOC) reacting to the Goa government’s notification issued on December 17, 2009, making it mandatory for casino owners to put in place a system to check customer identity and maintain identity records for up to 10 years.

AOC members said, “In European countries, casino winnings are issued by cheque, hence money launderers try to convert money obtained from crime into legal money by showing the source of the money as casino winnings. However, in India, casinos do not issue cheques. Hence the same is not possible in Goa.

As far as following of law of the land, casinos file all the particulars/returns as required by the law.”

According to the new rules, casinos will have to report transactions of over Rs 10 lakh and any ‘suspicious’ transactions to the Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-IND), extending the provisions of the central Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, to casinos in the state. In an official statement to TOI, AOC members said, “Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, was earlier applicable only to banks. From June 2009, it has been made applicable to other business areas like foreign exchange companies, money transferring agencies and casinos as well. This has been done based on the recommendation of the FATF (Financial Action Task Force), which focuses on financial health of a nation with respect to crime funding and terrorist funding. FATF wants to track the financial dealings by seeking the assistance of banks, financial institutions and casinos.”

The association has also stated, “With regards to the notification issued by the home department, after amendment to the PMLA, as a statutory requirement, all casinos will have to abide by the law of the land and casinos shall be happy to follow each and every rule laid down....and shall help the Financial Intelligence Unit to nab and co-relate complex multiple transactions carried out by money launderers if they chose to use the casino route.”

The statement issued by the AOC said, “The bottomline, therefore, is that casinos are not a part of money laundering or terrorism financing. Rather, the casinos’ role will involve assistance to the Financial Intelligence Unit to resolve complex multiple transactions of money launderers if, and only if, they use the casino route, which is highly impossible in India.” The Association of Off-Shore Casinos, Goa (AOC) is a body comprising the organized offshore vessel operators, operating within the gaming industry in Goa.