Casinos not implicated
The Philippine gaming regulator is investigating reports of possible money laundering involving three casinos, including Bloomberry Resorts Corp.’s Solaire Resort & Casino and Melco Crown Philippines Resort Corp.’s City of Dreams Manila.
According to Bloomberg News, about $100 million in funds were improperly funneled through the banking system and sent overseas in a matter of days; some of those funds were remitted to the casinos’ bank accounts, according to a statement from PAGCOR. The casinos have not been implicated in any criminal activity.
The World Casino Directory reports that the funds originated with “cyber-criminals hacking overseas accounts, possibly in Bangladesh.” The hackers were reportedly based in China; anonymous sources speaking to the Inquirer say they included “at least three ranking government officials and four other bankers.”
Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Teresita Herbosa recently warned that the country must toughen the rules on suspicious transactions at casinos or risk accusations that it is soft on terrorism. Senator Serge Osmena told Bloomberg the laws in the Philippines are among the “weakest in the world.”
According to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the millions of dollars in question may have entered the banks through a branch of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., then converted to pesos and deposited in an account of a Chinese-Filipino businessman who runs a junket operation.
A source that spoke to the newspapers says the lender immediately alerted the Anti-Money Laundering Council. The Philippine National Bank and BDO Unibank Inc. were also mentioned in the Inquirer report. Comment from the banks was not forthcoming.
