EGBA publishes pan-European guidance to combat money laundering
Advocacy group releases first continent-wide guidelines to help the gambling industry contribute towards Europe’s fight against money laundering
The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) has published its first pan-European guidelines for the gambling industry to help in the battle against money laundering.
These guidelines have been reviewed by Europe’s leading anti-money laundering (AML) compliance experts and reflect the latest technology and legislation.
The new guidance offers industry-specific and practical guidance on how operators should conduct risk assessments for customers, as well as due diligence processes, suspicious transaction reporting, record keeping and other essential areas that require strong AML compliance.
This new guidance needs to be applied by operators across their European operations. EGBA members are also required to submit annual reports to the group, showing the progress they’ve
made towards implementing the guidelines.
Operators that are not members are encouraged to report to the EGBA on how they are progressing with the new guidelines.
The guidelines were published following a consultation process in Autumn 2022 which involved industry experts and regulatory authorities providing feedback to the EGBA on the best course of action to combat money laundering.
Ekaterina Hartmann, director of legal and regulatory affairs at the EGBA, said: “As the sophistication of financial crime continues to evolve, the publication of these AML guidelines demonstrates EGBA’s commitment to ensure that Europe’s online gambling sector actively contributes towards the fight against financial crime.
“There’s currently a lack of sector-specific guidance to help Europe’s online gambling operators in their compliance efforts, and these guidelines provide a valuable tool to fill this gap and help operators achieve the highest possible standards.”
The EGBA also made calls at the end of 2022 for a continent-wide standardisation on the markers of gambling-related harm.
The proposals were sent to the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), and a poll was then taken by its members which concluded at the end of 2022.
The results of the poll are not yet known.