Legislation

Belgium – EGBA publishes first pan-European AML guidelines for online gaming

The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) has published its first pan-European guidelines to support the online gambling sector’s contribution to Europe’s fight against money laundering. The guidelines – reviewed and revised by Europe’s top anti-money laundering (AML) compliance experts – reflect the latest technologies and laws and build upon EGBA’s commitment to promote the highest level of industry responsibility in AML.

The EGBA guidelines on fighting money laundering and terrorist financing contain practical, sector-specific guidance on how online gambling operators should conduct customer and business risk assessments, customer due diligence processes, suspicious transaction reporting, record keeping, and other essential areas which require strong AML compliance. The guidelines – which operators should apply across their EU operations – apply a risk-based approach and aim to support the sector’s compliance with Europe’s various AML rules, including the EU’s upcoming AML Regulation. EGBA members are required to submit yearly reports to EGBA summarising their progress in implementing the guidelines, and other operators are also invited to join the initiative.

Publication of the guidelines follows a consultation period in the autumn of 2022, where EGBA invited feedback from industry experts and national regulatory authorities.

EGBA members are committed to a strong culture of AML compliance. In 2021, they were subject to 30 AML audits by Europe’s gambling and financial regulatory authorities and submitted nearly 13,000 suspicious activity reports to national law enforcement agencies to support Europe’s fight against money laundering. In addition, EGBA represents its members in various AML forums, including the European Commission and Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Dr Ekaterina Hartmann, Director of Legal and Regulatory Affairs, EGBA, said: “As the sophistication of financial crime continues to evolve, the publication of these AML guidelines demonstrates EGBA’s commitment to ensure that Europe’s online gambling sector actively contributes towards the fight against financial crime. There’s currently a lack of sector-specific guidance to help Europe’s online gambling operators in theirAML compliance efforts and these guidelines provide a valuable tool to fill this gap and help operators achieve the highest possible standards.”