2016 cyber-theft prompted change
Philippine legislators voted unanimously last month in favor of a bill that will add casinos to the list of businesses subject to the country’s anti-money laundering statutes.
According to Reuters, 219 lawmakers approved Bill 5663 on May 30, with no nays or abstentions. This measure is partly a response to the 2016 cyber-theft that allowed US$81 million stolen from Bangladesh to be funneled through Philippine casinos.
“We should move to be more transparent by amending the law to protect our casinos from money laundering by crime syndicates,” said Josephine Sato, one of the bill’s authors.
The approved measure requires any casino transactions worth 5 million pesos (US$100,500) to be reported to an anti-money laundering agency, Sato said.
