Philippine senator calls for probe into banks’ role in offshore gaming operator money laundering

Senator Gatchalian said money laundering was “one of the biggest crimes committed” by raided offshore gaming operators.

The Philippines.- Senator Win Gatchalian has said he wants to file a resolution to investigate the alleged failure of banks to identify suspicious financial activities related to offshore gaming operators tied to criminal activities. He said companies owned by Guo Hua Ping (Alice Guo, the suspended mayor of Bamban, Tarlac) moved hundreds of millions of pesos.

The senator suggested that the Guo family’s businesses, such as QJJ Farms and QJJ Embroidery, were likely used as fronts for laundering money to finance the construction of the offshore gaming hub, which reportedly cost over PHP6bn. He said: “Money laundering is one of the biggest crimes committed in the offshore gaming operators that were raided.”

The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) have filed 87 counts of money laundering against Guo and 35 others. Guo was arrested in Tangerang City, Jakarta, after leaving the Philippines on July 17.