The GCB is the supervisor of compliance of the gaming industry with legislation and regulation pertaining to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism. To this regard the GCB issues AML/CFT regulation and guidelines, periodically performs AML/CFT compliance audits, enforces compliance, and provides AML/CFT training opportunities for the gaming sector.
The Curaçao AML/CTF-legislation defines the circumstances that indicate whether a transaction must be deemed unusual. These circumstances are referred to as ”indicators”. Unusual transactions must be reported to the Curaçao Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU Curaçao). This applies to executed transactions as well as proposed transactions. FIU Curaçao determines if the reported transaction should also be categorized as a suspicious transaction.
A transaction is deemed unusual if one or more indicators apply. Indicators can be objective or subjective.
Subjective indicators are dependent on the opinion of the service provider. If he believes that the circumstances surrounding the transaction coincide with those described in the indicator, the transaction is unusual and reporting is mandatory.
Objective indicators are not open to interpretation and rely on hard facts, for instance whether the lower limit for the transaction amount is exceeded, if a client’s name appears on certain lists, or whether the transaction has been reported to the police in connection with money laundering. When an objective indicator applies, the transaction must be deemed unusual and reported to the FIU.
For the casino sector, the lottery sector and providers of internet gambling, Curaçao AML-regulation, The Decree Indicators Unusual Transactions [“Regeling Indicatoren Ongebruikelijke Transacties“ (PB 2015, no. 73), Annex F] has set three (3) objective indicators and one (1) subjective indicator. In addition to these indicators, the GCB can issue guidelines, indicating red flag-situations pertinent to the gaming business.
For the casino sector, the lottery sector and providers of internet gambling, the following indicators apply at the transactional level:
Objective indicators:
• A transaction that is reported to the police or the judicial authorities in connection with money laundering or the financing of terrorism.
• A proposed transaction by or for the benefit of a natural person, legal person, group or entity, whose name appears on a list that has been drawn up pursuant to the Sanctions National Ordinance.
• A transaction of the value of NAf 5,000 or more (or its equivalent in foreign currency), regardless of the method of payment, be it cash, by check or other form of payment, or electronically or by another non-physical way. This includes amongst others:
1. a transfer from the bank account of the service provider to a local or international bank account at the request of the client;
2. taking funds in deposit or releasing funds held in deposit at the request of a client;
3. Selling tokens (which includes chips and credits) to a client; and
4. Pay-out of prize money.
Subjective indicators:
Transactions that give reason to assume they could be related to money laundering or to the financing of terrorism.
