A new report has found that casinos, junkets, and cryptocurrency have emerged as a critical piece of the underground banking and money laundering infrastructure in East and Southeast Asia, fuelling transnational organized crime in the region.
The report has revealed that casinos, junkets, and cryptocurrency are playing a significant role in underground banking and money laundering in East and Southeast Asia.
UNODC found that Southeast Asia had over 340 authorized and unauthorized land-based casinos in early 2022. A shift to online platforms offering live dealer streaming and proxy betting services is observed. The formal online gambling market is projected to exceed US $205 billion by 2030, with the Asia Pacific region expected to have the highest market growth of 37% between 2022 and 2026.
Thai authorities have reported that illegal gambling within the country has reached…
