Almost CNY2 billion (US$277 million) worth of gambling payments was intercepted by banks and other financial institutions in China in 2022, according to the Payment and Clearing Association of China (PCAC). The move supports the Chinese government’s intensified crackdown on illegal gambling.
60,000 Gambling-related Transactions Detected
PCAC is a self-regulated organization representing the country’s payment and clearing service industry. Supervised by the People’s Bank of China, PCAC’s membership includes banks, financial institutions, payment clearing firms, licensed non-banking payment institutions, as well as support organizations focusing on the payment clearing business.
In its annual report published on August 10, PCAC said its members were able to detect more than 60,000 suspicious transactions related to gambling in 2022, with more than 4,200 payment accounts and 54 merchants found to be involved in gambling activities. The body did not provide further details about its detection methods, nor did it specify the types of gambling activity involved.
China Continues Crackdown on Illegal Gambling
China’s tough stance against gambling resulted in an amendment to the country’s criminal law enforced in March 2021, under which the act of assisting mainland Chinese with overseas gambling is considered a criminal offense.
