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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
The PLP government represented to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and other international bodies that any increase in the risk of money laundering or terrorist financing due to Gaming in the Bahamas would be address with strict regulation. We are reliably informed that to date Anti Money Laundering solutions are not in place for the Regulator of Gaming to be in compliant with international standards. In other words, there is no proper monitoring in place for the webshops. Accordingly, the Bahamas is at risk of being evaluated as not fully compliant to the international standards by the Caribbean Financial Task Force (CFAFT) evaluation team. Presently the Regulator (Gaming Board) cannot monitor the Operator (Webshops).
This is cause for concern because without the necessary monitoring, the operation of these gaming houses in the Bahamas could be open to money laundering and terror financing. In addition, the unmonitored Gaming houses act as money transmission businesses. For example, persons can go to the webshop in Nassau, put money on an account for someone in Grand Bahama, and that person can receive that money in Grand Bahama…all unregulated.
Further because of this industry not being properly monitored, minors can enter the webshops and gamble. Nobody is verified. You can go to an account, put one dollar on a particular number and nobody will be asked to present ID. This verification of persons also applies to foreigners or persons who are here illegally coming into the webshops to gamble which is contrary to the Gaming Act. Moreover, the government is not in a position to know the true income of these webshops and thus unable to collect the appropriate taxes. The government must go on what is presented to them by the operators. At the casinos for example, proper software is in place that would cause the government to know exactly what is due in taxes from the casinos. This is not the case with the webshops.
It also seems as if recently the Bahamas has been introduced to a lottery. This lottery runs from 8am to 11:30pm everyday and draws every half an hour which amounts to 31 plays a day. According to the Prime Minister, he was not aware of this. Accordingly, the question must be ask, when did the Appointed Gaming Board grant approval for a lottery without the Prime Minister’s and the Minister Responsible for Gaming knowledge or, indeed, without the knowledge of the Bahamian people? There must be some explanation given to the Bahamian people.
Eight webshop operators have been given provisional licences to date from the Gaming Board. The new Gaming legislation has been enacted for almost two years. The Minister Responsible for Gaming recently stated that he expects full licences to be issued within months. Can the good Minister confirm whether or not the delay in issuing these licences is because of the absence of proper monitoring?
Taken these matters into consideration and given what transpired recently in Panama, the Bahamas, and by extension Bahamians themselves, could be put very much at risk of a possible adverse assessment by FATF, it’s regional body, CFATF and other international bodies.
Branville McCartney
DNA Leader
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