This mostly came with no strings attached from the government, other than preparing the necessary paperwork and making sure that certain standards for responsible gambling and underage gambling have been observed.

Poker Machines Now Need a RG Officer to Tend to Customers

Yet, a wave of regulatory changes across the state will now expect pubs and other venues that have at least 20 poker machines to a more rigorous standard whereby they also employ Responsible Gambling Officers whose purpose will be to determine whether a patron is at risk of harm.

Venues that have more than 20 poker machines will only employ a single such person, but if the poker machines exceed 100, then additional staff will have to take over. There is a grace period still, as venues will be given time to adapt, and not least – the measure is not going to come into effect until July 1, 2024.

Once it does, businesses will have further time to make sure that they are compliant with the law. “The introduction of Responsible Gambling Officers is the next important step in supporting people who may be experiencing gambling harm,” has been vastly welcomed by responsible gambling groups and advocates, including Clubs NSW, an industry body, that said it was very much for the proposed changes.

The group’s CEO, Rebecca Riant, said that she was very much for minimizing harm and that the 1,200 members of the trade group were prepared to comply with the measures as necessary to ensure that patrons are protected and out of harm’s way.

The measure does put a financial burden on businesses that will now have to train and find qualified individuals as the nation, and New South Wales in particular, is responding to a growing need for a more scrupulous approach towards responsible gambling.

New South Wales Toughens Measures on Gambling

More measures are forthcoming. Some, such as the removal of gambling inducements from physical signs outside of pubs and clubs, have also come into effect, but others, including the restriction of AU$500 ($330) input into a poker machine are to take effect later.

Australia is also flirting with the introduction of a mandatory cashless payment option, which is so far stuck between different trials, and which has caused rather more indignation than other measures. Clubs have spoken out against the measure arguing that the government equates their clientele to criminals, and raised data standards.

Clubs have come under a lot of scrutiny recently, with some penalized for having ATMs next to their gaming rooms.

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Cal Chrustie and Peter German have asked for a comprehensive investigation into the ongoing problem represented by illicit funds and suspicious casino transactions in Ontario in the past few years. 

Suspicious Transaction Amounts Went Up by $1M a Day

Between 2019 and 2022, Ontario’s casinos recorded a massive rise in the size of flagged transactions, marking a rise of more than one million per day.

In 2019, the figure had reached CAD$334 million ($248 million), according to data from records obtained via a freedom of information request. By 2022, the same figure recorded an increase of $38 million.

During the same year, state regulators introduced a new set of regulations requiring casino operators to keep detailed logs of players wagering over $3,000 in a single transaction. They were also prompted to ask for the source of the respective funds and keep a close eye on any signs of money laundering. 

According to former Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer Cal Chrustie, in many of these instances where large sums of money are involved, their source is “illicit”. 

The investigator who specialized in complex money laundering and transnational crime cases further explained that while the numbers were “significant”, additional research of the transactions was necessary to issue a clear conclusion.

Chrustie also spoke about the potential money laundering activities that should be regarded as much more than regular financial crime since the illicit gains could fuel criminals like drug traffickers and other agencies that could threaten the security of the country.

The ex-RCMP officer added that relying on police authorities to assess reports of suspicious transactions would not suffice, given their overwhelming number. 

Besides the fraudulent casino funds problem, there is also a high risk of international fraudsters attempting to cheat the legal gambling market in Ontario. However, GeoComply reassured the public that licensed operators in Ontario continue to be the safest to play with, with special emphasis on customers being the highest protected category.

The “Dirty Money” Report on British Columbia’s Casinos

Ex-RCMP deputy commissioner Peter German compiled the “Dirty Money” report on British Columbia casinos. 

The report emphasized a number of recommendations that, when put into practice, were the main reason why the volume of suspicious transactions went down abruptly.

While German explained that it was not possible to draw any clear conclusions relying on Ontario’s raw figures, a lot of insight could be gained by looking at the funds in perspective and understanding the way they were generated. 

German also mentioned the matters of underreporting and overreporting, explaining the need for the regulator to get involved in assessing the quality of these transactions. 

British Columbia regulators introduced a similar set of rules similar to the ones Ontario is now using to considerably reduce the number of suspicious transactions. The measures were implemented after it was revealed the funds were used in a transnational money laundering effort. 

While the regulator had failed to comply with the reporting requirements concerning suspicious cash transactions in the past, the new rules generated excellent results, as presented by B.C. government figures. 

Namely, in 2015, B.C. casinos reported $153 million in suspicious transactions. The figure continued to drop on a yearly basis, reaching $3 million in 2022. In the meanwhile, Ontario’s online gambling industry announced excellent growth during its first year of existence.

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