WHAT IS AML?
As with many businesses in New Zealand, SkyCity is subject to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (AML/CFT Act). The purpose of this law is to ensure that we keep New Zealand free from criminals intending to launder money through businesses like casinos.
The AML/CFT Act places obligations on SkyCity such as:
- A requirement to know our customers
- A requirement to verify the identity of customers conducting certain transactions
- A requirement to verify the source of the funds presented for certain transactions
- In limited cases, a requirement to verify the source of a customer's wealth.
KNOWING OUR CUSTOMERS
As you move through the Premier Rewards membership tiers, we may seek more information about you. This could include asking you about your source of wealth. This helps ensure that we know who our customers are, so we meet our AML obligations.
WHEN DO YOU NEED TO VERIFY MY IDENTITY?
Under the AML/CFT Act, we need to verify your identity if you conduct cash transactions of $6,000 or more (whether in a single transaction or in a series of linked transactions) or if you want to open a casino deposit account or QUICK Pay account with us.
If we have verified your identity then you don't need to go through the process again, although we might ask you to provide an updated photo ID once your current ID expires.
HOW DO YOU VERIFY MY IDENTITY?
A current passport or New Zealand Driver License are easy ways for us to verify your identity. SkyCity staff can provide further information about acceptable identity documents if you do not have a passport or driver licence.
If you ask to open a casino deposit account or QUICK Pay account, we will also need to verify your home address which can be quickly verified by supplying us with, for example, a utility bill addressed to you on your smart phone.
WHY DO YOU NEED TO KNOW MY SOURCE OF WEALTH?
As a regulated casino, the AML/CFT Act also requires that in certain situations we understand the source of a customer's funds and/or the source of their wealth. For instance, we may request this information when a customer seeks to conduct a large cash transaction or large electronic transfer.
There may also be occasions where we ask you to supply independent documents as evidence of your source of funds or source of wealth. You can help us through this process quickly and efficiently by showing us that you have sufficient funds to support your gambling activity, plus the source where such funds come from. While we wait to receive and process this information, your account may be subject to certain restrictions. Any information you provide is kept safe and secure.
WHAT SORT OF INFORMATION MIGHT BE REQUIRED?
If you are asked to provide information about your source of funds/wealth, the best information you can provide is documents that verify what you are telling us. For example:
- Bank statements – can verify things such as income/savings
- Business records – can verify your ownership of or employment by a company
- Receipts – can verify from where you received cash/electronic payments
We're not doing this because we think our customers are laundering money – we're doing it to ensure that gambling at SkyCity is safe and because we are required to under the law.