ILLEGIAL GAMBLING COULD REACH OVER $2 BILLION IN AUSTRALIA NEXT YEAR

Despite a rigorous government crackdown and the introduction of new legislation, the gambling black market in Australia appears to be stronger than ever with forecasts estimating it will be worth more than $2 billion a year by the end of 2020.

These are among the findings of a recent report by the Hong Kong based Asian Racing Federation (ARF). The group prepared the report on illegal gambling in Australia, as well as New Zealand, South Africa, South Korea and Singapore.

Further findings from the report show that up to 6% of wagers currently being placed in Australia are illegal, resulting in around $269.67 million in lost tax revenue every year. It detailed that this situation exists even after legislation in 2017 banned online gambling and passed a series of measures designed to shut loopholes that were being exploited by foreign iGaming operators.

The report also said that the link between illegal gambling and organized crime is almost too strong to sever and is helping to fuel a black market economy, as well as money laundering activities said to worth up to $35.49 billion.

The Australian Treasury, as well as the Black Economy Taskforce (BET), are now reviewing the report in order to understand the findings and introduce enhancements and new strategies that can identify and eliminate illegal gambling. These could include requiring all domestic Internet service providers to block unlicensed offshore online casinos and sports betting domains as well as prohibiting local financial institutions from processing transactions destined for these sites.

Sources: Calvynayre.com, worldcasinodirectory.com