US Online Gambling Bill - Neteller position

[scrawnybob]

hi all

Below is the statement in full by Neteller relating to the recent US online gambling bill -
cheers Scrawnybob


US Member Update: 1st October 2006

On Friday 29 September 2006, the US Congress passed legislation which includes certain provisions to prohibit unlawful internet gambling through the restriction of payments to such sites.

The Bill states that there will be a period of up to 9 months for the US regulators to prescribe regulations requiring each designated payment system and all participants therein to identify and block or otherwise prevent or prohibit restricted transactions.

It is currently unclear how NETELLER, a European company, with no assets, presence or employees in the US, would be affected by this bill. Once the regulations have been written, NETELLER will have a clearer view of which companies are affected, how those companies will be expected to comply, and any possible resulting impact on NETELLER and its US facing business.

NETELLER continues to operate its business as normal.

Over 3 million customers in 160 countries trust NETELLER to transfer over $7 billion each year. The company is authorized in the UK by the Financial Services Authority and listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange. To protect its customers’ money, all deposited, in-transit, and un-cleared funds are held in Trust Accounts. *

[truushot]

This will be the test. I can't see how the banking industry or the united states government will be able to tell where the money comes to neteller. As neteller isn't affiated with any gambling sites it won't be effected by this bill. The only issue that we have to worry about it the governament trying to get the internet providers to ban servers that are known to host gambling sites. The problem with this is that many legal activates happen on these same servers so who could it be legal to ban them? This law if it even passes the legal tests it will certainly face will have little effect on players that really want to play.

[pokermania]

The only way to fight this unlawful restriction is to stand firm and not back down. We should not be overcome by baseless fear.

Neteller knows it's not violating any laws so kudos to these guys.

[littlegrave]

Bad news for US players. This article is from cardplayer:

NETeller to Follow Jurisdiction of UIGE Act

It Says Act Is Unclear on How to Deal With Companies like NETELLER
NETeller has decided to take a more cautionary approach in dealing with the United States’ recent attempt at stemming online gambling.
In a statement released today, NETeller said it will honor transactions until the Department of the Treasury figures out how to enforce the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement (UIGE) Act. It has until July 10, 2007, to figure out how it will work with banks to stop transactions from financial institutions that work with Americans from transferring money to gambling sites.
Last week, NETeller’s executive vice president Bruce Elliot told a gaming conference in Spain that the company would continue working with Americans.
“I don’t think we have a very big problem,” he said.
But today, NETeller released a statement letting everyone know that it will comply with the UIGE Act when it goes into effect. The statement reads in part:
“NETeller, a company registered outside the US, will comply with the Act and its related regulations as if it were subject to the Act's jurisdiction. This action is intended to ensure that the Company is able to continue to operate with the support of its principal commercial partners and to protect its shareholders, business partners, employees and reputation.
“Various provisions of the Act, including the obligations of financial transaction providers such as NETeller, remain unclear. The uncertainty should be largely resolved when the Secretary of the Treasury and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System issue the regulations they are required to prescribe within 270 days.”
President George W. Bush signed the UIGE Act into law Friday, Oct. 13, when he put his pen to an act designed to boost security at the nation’s ports. The UIGE Act was attached to the act for port safety with the help of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist in the last session before the Senate broke for a long election-year recess. To read a CardPlayer.com article about it, click here.
Click here to visit our complete legislative archives.
NETeller is a publicly traded company and the Monday after the Senate passed the Port Safety Act, its shares fell from 355 pence to 140 pence. It’s currently trading at 144 pence.
FirePay, NETeller’s rival in the world of third-party banking companies, made it clear to US customers that it planned to stop doing business with them immediately after the President signed the Act into law. FirePay made this announcement soon after the Senate passed the UIGE Act.
Although the Treasury Department has 270 days, that doesn’t mean it has to use all that time. Regulations can and probably will be in place before the deadline.
NETeller claims it moved around $7.3 billion in 2005. The company was founded in 1999 and is located in the Isle of Man with offices in Calgary, London, Hong Kong, and San Jose, Costa Rica.

[christinascott66]

Fight the Ban on Onlone Poker - Click below to send a letter to congress to show your support.

http://www.fightwhatsnext.org