“An opportunity for organized crime”
Australia’s gaming compliance watchdog has filed a statement of claim against Tabcorp Holdings Ltd., saying the gaming giant did not provide adequate protections against money laundering and terrorism financing, reports the Economic Times.
AUSTRAC CEO Paul Jevtovic said Melbourne-based Tabcorp failed to improve its oversight after a “long and comprehensive” evaluation and recommendations by the compliance body.
“Noncompliance of this nature provides opportunities for organized crime to exploit vulnerabilities and puts at risk the integrity of the Australian financial system,” Jevtovic said in a statement. “As we have demonstrated in this case, we will take strong action when companies fail to make the necessary improvements to address serious and systemic noncompliance.”
Tabcorp said in a statement that it takes compliance “extremely seriously” and would comment after reviewing the lawsuit.
Tabcorp could be fined as much as A$17 million (US$12.60 million) if it is found guilty of noncompliance. A preliminary hearing is set for August 11, reported the Times.
