US Banks Fight US Gambling Regulations

After passing the UIGEA last year, the federal government then dropped the enforcement of the regulations of that law in the laps of the US banking industry. The banking industry warned the US Treasury today that it will be impossible to comply with the enforcement unless the Bush administration clarifies its conflicting views on online betting.

The Financial Services Roundtable who, according to their website, has a mission to "provide congressional staff with basic information on the role of the financial services industry in the U.S. economy and to review financial services issues affecting congressional offices," has stated it is very concerned that the adoption of these rules could cost the banks a "significantly."

In a public filing to the Treasury and Federal Reserve, the Roundtable said, "The statute and the proposed rule expand the role of financial institutions to police laws that are more appropriate for law enforcement agencies."

Currently the way the rules are proposed, the US financial institutions will have to have policies and procedures in place that are "reasonably designed to prevent payments being made to illegal gambling businesses." The US Treasury says that "illegal gambling consists of any bet or wager involving the internet that is illegal in the state in which the bet is made."

One of the largest US financial institutions, Bank of America, has commented that the US government a list of entities in which they are forbidden to take payments from because of the "unambiguous" definition of what is legal.