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
DIS must correct costly stalemate

More than P8.1 million has already been spent, yet there appears to be no lasting solution in sight. This is not simply a dispute between the DIS and a group of officers. It is a matter of public accountability. Every pula spent by government comes from taxpayers who expect public funds to be used wisely and responsibly, especially during economic hardships faced by many.The officers exercised their constitutional right to seek justice through...

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