Philippine casinos comply with anti-money laundering law
Five licensed casinos in the Philippines have registered with the financial intelligence organisation.
Philippines.- Five casinos in the Philippines that currently operate with approved gaming license have joined the list of transparent companies, as they have registered with the financial intelligence organisation. The Anti-Money Laundering Council in the Philippines confirmed to the press which companies decided to boost legal operations in the country.
In a statement issued last week, the council identified the companies as Travellers International Hotel Group Inc, the operator of Resorts World Manila; Widus International Leisure Inc and Widus Philippines Inc, which run the Widus Hotel and Casino; Bloomberry Resorts and Hotels Inc, which runs the Solaire Resort and Casino; Melco Resorts and Entertainment (Philippines) Corp, which runs the City of Dreams Manila; and Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment Inc, which runs the Okada Manila.
Meanwhile, the Anti-Money Laundering Council in the Philippines is expecting that all casinos in the country will be registered with the body by August 17th. “The registration requirement is featured in guidelines issued by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international policy-making body that sets standards and promotes effective implementation of measures to combat money laundering and terrorism financing,” reads the AML statement.
Furthermore, gaming authority of Philippines, Pagcor (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp), supported a recently-released moratorium on the casino licensing process. According to Pagcor President and Chief Operating Officer Alfredo Lim, the measure would help authorities protect current operators’ interests in the Philippines.
The moratorium puts a stop on issuing land-based casino licences by the government in order to protect investments that have already made in the country, as authorities explained during the World Gaming Executive Summit in Barcelona. Current casino licences are not affected by the measure and could benefit from it.
