The U.S. Treasury Department may soon require casinos to determine and report sources of high roller income, according to a report in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The specter of government officials prying into these big spenders and their dealings went through the industry like “a magnitude 7.0 earthquake,” RJ writer Howard Stutz wrote last month.
Title 31 of the Bank Secrecy Act is designed in part to thwart money laundering. At last year’s G2E Expo in Las Vegas, Jennifer Shasky Calvery, director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), said casinos could be subject to the same requirements as banks and other businesses dealing with large sums of cash.
“Every financial institution, casinos included, should be concerned about its reputation,” she said. “Integrity goes a long way.”
The American Gaming Association has issued a statement saying it “is actively engaged with key federal agencies” in discussing the matter. Casino owners fear intense scrutiny could drive moneyed gamblers to more lenient markets, like Macau and Singapore.
“This is a serious issue that could radically alter the way that casinos do business,” AGA President Geoff Freeman said in the statement.
