Inside Asian Gaming

IAG DEC 2021年12月 亞博匯 16 US COMPANIES WARNED OUT OF CAMBODIA CASINO SECTOR 美企遭警告遠離投資柬埔寨賭場 THE US DEPARTMENT OF STATE , US Department of the Treasury and US Department of Commerce have issued a joint advisory cautioning American companies either operating in or considering operating in Cambodia against interactions with certain entities and sectors of concern, including the casino industry. The advisory highlights illicit finance activities and interactions with Cambodian entities involved in the trafficking of people, wildlife and narcotics as the two primary areas of risk exposure for US companies, with casinos – particularly those located in Sihanoukville – closely linked to both. Other industries of concern include the financial, real estate and infrastructure sectors. In a section dedicated to casinos, the advisory points to a 263% increase in casino licenses issued in Cambodia between 2014 and 2019 as having “outpaced regulators’ capacity to monitor and police these establishments, attracting organized crime elements that invest in casinos and use them to launder money. “Recognizing these vulnerabilities related to new casinos and other commercial enterprises in Preah Sihanouk province, which hosts most of the casinos, the government established an inter-ministerial task force to investigate alleged money laundering and human trafficking. The task force has not issued a report on its findings, as of October 2021.” Cambodia was gray-listed by the Financial Action Task Force – an intergovernmental organization tasked with leading global anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing efforts – in 2019 for deficiencies in its programs and remains gray-listed to this day due to “limited regulations and oversight.” Corruption is “endemic and widespread,” the advisory states. 美國國務院 、財政部和商務部發佈聯合諮詢 意見，警告在柬埔寨經營或考慮在柬埔寨經 營的美國公司，不要與某些實體和部門進行 互動，包括當地博彩業。 該意見強調，非法融資活動以及與參 與販賣人口、野生動物和毒品販運的柬埔寨 實體是美國公司面臨的兩個主要風險領域， 其中賭場——尤其是位於西哈努克城的賭 場——與這兩者密切相關。 其他值得關注的行業是金融、房地產和 基礎設施行業。在專門針對賭場的部分中， 該意見指出，2014年至2019年間，柬埔寨頒 發的賭牌增加了263%，「超過了監管機構 對這些機構的監控和監管能力，吸引了有組 織犯罪分子投資賭場並使用它們洗錢。」 「當局認識到大部分賭場所在地的西 哈努克省的新賭場和其他商業企業的相關漏 洞後，成立了一個跨部門工作組，以調查涉 嫌洗錢和販賣人口的行為。但截至2021年 10月，工作組尚未發佈關於調查結果的報 告。」 2019年，柬埔寨被一個負責領導全球反 洗錢和反恐融資工作的政府間組織「防制洗 錢金融行動工作組」列入灰名單，而由於「 有限的監管」其至今仍在灰名單中。報告還 指出，腐敗是「地方性和普遍性的」。