RGA questions new EU money laundering rules
Revised rules broadly welcomed by online operators however increased due diligence requirements questioned
The European Parliament adopted revised money laundering rules yesterday, bringing all gambling services under a harmonised European framework for the first time.
The new Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD), designed to bring greater legal security and consistency to the industry, was broadly welcomed by online gambling operators.
However the Remote Gaming Association (RGA) said it was “disappointed” that online gambling was singled out in the framework, and questioned the measure requiring operators to apply due diligence to all customers as soon as a business relationship is established.
“This requirement conflicts with the spirit of the Commission’s proposal and the previous Directives,” it said in a statement. “In practice it could well mean that the online gambling industry will be compelled to conduct due diligence on every one of its customers.”
The rules voted by the Parliament yesterday also states that Member States may be exceptionally entitled to exempt certain forms of gambling following approval by the European Commission.
Clive Hawkswood, the RGA’s Chief Executive, said it was difficult to understand how the European Parliament opted to tighten anti-money laundering rules for egaming firms.
“The licensed online gambling sector has highly developed tools for identifying possible threats and has an excellent record in preventing money laundering,” he said. “As an industry we are never complacent, but quite simply there is no justification for singling out our sector for this kind of treatment.”
Maarten Haijer, secretary general of EGBA, remained more positive following the changes, saying the move “confirms that online gambling is an inherent cross-border service which, in line with the subsidiarity principle, is better governed by one set of rules at EU level, rather than by 28 different national laws”.
“These rules will further add to the existing body of Internal Market legislation applicable to the gambling sector,” Haijer said.
The move came after the European Commission had appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to explore ways in which Europe could move towards a “comprehensive” continent-wide framework for online gambling as revealed by eGR earlier this month.
The study will seek to standardise the myriad of regulatory and supervisory structures implemented across member states which has led to “ad-hoc” cross-border cooperation.