A new proposed law will give the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and other State agencies like police and National Intelligence Service (NIS) a window to track betting activities in real-time.
The government has backed the law which seeks to capture suspicious bets and gamblers in the latest drive to combat money laundering and the money laundering via use of gambling platforms.
The proposed law is part of amendments being made to the Gaming Bill.
The government believes cartels have taken over betting firms as a vehicle to launder the proceeds of crime and corruption in the country. The taxman also believes they are using betting as a conduit in order to under-declare their earnings.
“The Board (Gaming board) shall establish a framework to facilitate real time monitoring of online gaming activities which shall be accessible for monitoring by the Communications Authority of Kenya, the board and any other relevant government agencies,” says the Bill which is before parliament.
If the bill is approved , other agencies such as the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA), security teams and the Financial Reporting Centre (FRC)—which is mandated to track illicit cash— will have real-time access to your betting activities.
Under major scrutiny will be gamblers dealing in large transactions, like making large deposits and staking a small fraction of it as the government will be watching.
The Bill comes amid rumours that betting sites have been paying actors to pretend they have won millions of shillings in their jackpot offerings.
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