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ARMENIA TIGHTENS GAMBLING INDUSTRY WITH FATF PRINCIPLES
HULIQ
April 6 2010
SC
The gambling industry of Armenia is about to experience a major
overhaul using concepts developed from the Paris-based Financial
Action Task Force (FATF) to guide the industry. The idea behind the
reform is to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing and other
illegal activities from taking place.
Armenia's Deputy Finance Minister, Vardan Aramyan, made the
announcement Tuesday in keeping with recent actions taken to move
Armenia's casinos away from all cities such as the capital Yerevan.
The country's three largest resort towns, Jermuk, Tsaghkadzor and
Sevan would instead play host to the country's gambling halls.
The pullback of Armenian casinos takes its lead from FATF principles.
The policies issued by the FATF include the Forty Recommendations on
money laundering as well as the 9 Special Recommendations on Terrorists
Financing. These recommendations make it harder for money laundering
to occur, while implementing policies that keep thorough records of
customers and customer transactions.
According to Aramyan, the new bill aids "Larger companies in
this sector" which "are more disciplined and have control systems,
separate subdivisions to fight against money laundering and financing
of terrorism. Smaller companies are less disciplined, more negligent,
and that is conditioned by their abilities."
Currently, Armenia is home to 11 casinos and 103 gambling halls. The
passage of the 'RA Concept on Regulation and Control of the Gambling
Business Sector' on April 1 ensures more state control over the halls
including regular visitor quantity counts and higher annual fees.
The gambling sector in Armenia is an important part of the country's
economy. It provides much needed revenue that pays for infrastructure
and other improvements. Being a small country with a tiny population
and having neighbors like Iran and Turkey (each has 72 million
population) Armenia's gambling industry is poised to benefit from
those markets. Only recently during the Iranian Novruz celebration
more than 15,000 tourists from Iran visited Armenia in one week.
The new FATF- sanctioned laws will hopefully clean up the sector
without hurting profits.
Written by Lani Shadduck HULIQ.com
HULIQ
April 6 2010
SC
The gambling industry of Armenia is about to experience a major
overhaul using concepts developed from the Paris-based Financial
Action Task Force (FATF) to guide the industry. The idea behind the
reform is to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing and other
illegal activities from taking place.
Armenia's Deputy Finance Minister, Vardan Aramyan, made the
announcement Tuesday in keeping with recent actions taken to move
Armenia's casinos away from all cities such as the capital Yerevan.
The country's three largest resort towns, Jermuk, Tsaghkadzor and
Sevan would instead play host to the country's gambling halls.
The pullback of Armenian casinos takes its lead from FATF principles.
The policies issued by the FATF include the Forty Recommendations on
money laundering as well as the 9 Special Recommendations on Terrorists
Financing. These recommendations make it harder for money laundering
to occur, while implementing policies that keep thorough records of
customers and customer transactions.
According to Aramyan, the new bill aids "Larger companies in
this sector" which "are more disciplined and have control systems,
separate subdivisions to fight against money laundering and financing
of terrorism. Smaller companies are less disciplined, more negligent,
and that is conditioned by their abilities."
Currently, Armenia is home to 11 casinos and 103 gambling halls. The
passage of the 'RA Concept on Regulation and Control of the Gambling
Business Sector' on April 1 ensures more state control over the halls
including regular visitor quantity counts and higher annual fees.
The gambling sector in Armenia is an important part of the country's
economy. It provides much needed revenue that pays for infrastructure
and other improvements. Being a small country with a tiny population
and having neighbors like Iran and Turkey (each has 72 million
population) Armenia's gambling industry is poised to benefit from
those markets. Only recently during the Iranian Novruz celebration
more than 15,000 tourists from Iran visited Armenia in one week.
The new FATF- sanctioned laws will hopefully clean up the sector
without hurting profits.
Written by Lani Shadduck HULIQ.com