News

In AML push, Macau mandates facial recognition at ATMs

May 12, 2017

The government of Macau has announced that ATMs in the territory must be equipped with facial recognition and ID-reading technology, which China UnionPay cardholders will have to use in order to make cash withdrawals.

The measures are being implemented in an effort to prevent a growing problem of money-laundering at casinos, according to a Bloomberg report.

The Chinese government has said that ATMs in Macau — a special administrative region of China and the only place in the country where gambling is legal — have been used to move wealth amounting to billions of dollars out of the country.

According to the report, money laundering through Macau's ATMs "pushed down the value of the currency and drained capital reserves."

No timeline has been announced for the ATM upgrades and the measures are not expected to have a significant impact on cash demand from the machines, the report said.