the monitor

Gambling flagged as suspicious transaction reports rise

WILDFIRE: Gambling, particularly online sports betting, has exploded in popularity in the country PIC: MICROSOFT BING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
WILDFIRE: Gambling, particularly online sports betting, has exploded in popularity in the country PIC: MICROSOFT BING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

The Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA) has picked the use of “high value cash in gambling” as one of the emerging patterns contributing to a rise in suspicious transaction reports that more than doubled to P139.1 million in five months.

By law, banks, bureaux de change, car dealers, microlenders, attorneys, and others must file suspicious transaction reports with the FIA.

The agency defines a suspicious transaction as one inconsistent with a customer’s known legitimate business, one that gives rise to a reasonable suspicion that may involve the commission of a financial offence, one made in circumstances of unusual or unjustified complexity, one that appears to have no economic justification or lawful objective or made by or on behalf of a person whose identity is unknown, amongst other factors.

Editor's Comment
Child protection needs more than prevailing laws

The rise in defilement and missing persons cases, particularly over the recent festive period, points not merely to a failure of policing, but to a profound and widespread societal crisis. Whilst the Police chief’s plea is rightly directed at parents, the root of this emergency runs deeper, demanding a collective response from every corner of our community. Marathe’s observations paint a picture of neglect with children left alone for...

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