About IABFM

Latest Press Releases

Press Releases issued by the Academy, by members and partners in 2008-2009 appear below.

Press Releases generally approved for release on the association websites include:

• News about the membership
• Announcement of events for members and candidates
• News about our members in the press where IABFM™ is mentioned
• Formal announcements
• Tie ups or collaboration with other associations or government bodies
• Changes to the board governance structure

If you have a press-release you would like displayed on the member's website, please submit to [email protected].

Compliance Issues

March 31, 2017

TABCORP slammed with AUD$45 million penalty for anti-money laundering violations

23/03/2017/in News /by GRC Solutions

Gambling corporation TABCORP has agreed to pay AUSTRAC (Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre) a AUD$45 million dollar penalty after failing to comply with anti-money laundering regulations. It’s the largest civil penalty ever in corporate Australia.

Federal Court judge Nye­ Perram yesterday ruled that TABCORP had contravened the Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 108 times over more than five years.

While TABCORP did not deliberately seek to mislead AUSTRAC, it has admitted it failed to report suspicious gambling activities. Examples include failing to identify a customer who won $100,000. TABCORP failed to lodge the appropriate information with the agency in the time required by law.

Another example included “credit betting incidents”, whereby a TABCORP agent approved a line of credit, which is illegal, to a customer.

“The penalty of $45 million sends an unequivocal message to the financial and gambling sectors in this country, if you don’t take your AML (anti-money laundering) and CTF (counter-terrorism financing) obligations seriously, we will take action,” AUSTRAC Chief Executive Paul Jevtovic said on Thursday.

It’s not the first time AUSTRAC has taken action against TABCORP, having previously done so in 2015.

The size of this penalty will be a wakeup call for other companies to take their money laundering and terrorism financing obligations seriously.

Press Release Archive