CREDIT UNIONS SUGGEST SUSPENSION OF UIGEA PROPOSAL

21 December 2007

Credit union compliance with proposed rules to crack down on illegal online gambling would be difficult if not impossible


The influential US national credit union, CUNA has responded the the proposed UIGEA regulations, asking that the U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve hold off on the proposed new regulations, which are supposed to enforce the ban on financial transactions with online gambling companies.

The CUNA letter commended the drafters for trying to meet the timing requirements involved, but said that the proposal raises a number of serious and practical concerns that will make compliance for institutions extremely difficult, if not virtually impossible.

CUNA joined with the National Association of Credit Unions (NAFCU) which also asked for a moratorium on the new regulations on the grounds that CUs are ill-suited to take up what are essentially police functions.

“It is not clear how institutions will be able to meet their compliance requirements to identify and block transactions that fund illegal gambling activities when there is no mechanism under consideration that would allow them to verify when a payment transaction is intended for that purpose,” CUNA wrote in its December 13 letter.

CUNA pointed out that one way of approaching the problem, that of the government providing a list of unlawful Internet gambling businesses, was precluded by the US authorities. “The supplementary information discussing the proposal goes to great lengths to explain why such a list should not be provided by the government,” CUNA noted.

The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) is the premier national trade association serving credit unions. Ninety percent of America's credit unions are members.

In its assessment of the proposed regulations, CUNA wrote: "We feel that rather than continue with implementation of the current proposal, which raises a range of problematic issues, the regulators should work together with Congress to develop an approach that will meet public policy goals in a clearly understood manner and without inflicting undue hardships on the financial institution sector in the process."

CUNA identified the following problem areas in the joint agency plan:

The definition of "Unlawful Internet Gambling" is unclear;


The "Policies and Procedures" explanations should be expanded;


The "safe harbour" should be enlarged;


Enforcement provisions should be clarified; and


The effective date should be extended.

The CUNA recommendations also appeared to support the efforts of Congressman Barney Frank and his Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act, which seeks to license and regulate online gambling in the United States, commenting: "One solution that would promote regulatory simplicity while assisting institutions to comply is contained in HR 2046, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act, introduced by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank. This bill would require Internet gaming businesses to be licensed and pay user fees to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

"We can envision that under this measure a list of licensed gambling enterprises could be developed for use in identifying and blocking transactions for Internet gambling entities that are not on the list. Such an approach would promote compliance for institutions by providing them a much greater level of certainty as to whether a transaction for a particular entity should be prevented.

"We also realize that Congress has not enacted HR 2046. However, until the government is able to provide a workable list or until Congress passes legislation such as HR 2046 to license legal activities, we feel it will be extremely difficult for institutions to identify and block transactions that they cannot conclusively determine are illegal. That is why we believe a moratorium on the promulgation of this regulation is necessary until a better approach for identifying the payee as an Internet gambling business can be established."

Online Casino News courtesy of InfoPowa