It said the onus for protecting people from online gambling should lie with the banks.
An Australian Senate committee tasked with reviewing a Bill that sought to ban the use of credit cards for online gambling has recommended for it to be scrapped. Introduced into Parliament by Senator Stirling Griff last year, the Bill sought to make it a criminal offence for an organisation to accept credit card payments for interactive gambling services, which covers all gambling that takes place online. Currently in Australia, online gambling activities are not regulated in the same way physical as gambling spots such as licensed venues, casinos, and TAB outlets, as credit card use is permitted when gambling online. The Senate committee decided to not recommend the Bill as it found it could result in unintended consequences that impact the broader gambling community and lotteries. In the committee’s report [PDF] assessing the Bill, it said these impacts included consumers potentially seeking out other payment mechanisms, some consumers placing more focus onto unregulated offshore wagering, and increased use of third-party payment mechanisms for gambling. It added that there was already an existing framework for preventing harmful use of credit cards as individuals applying for credit cards are subject to consumer credit and background checks to assess their suitability for particular products. In this regard, the committee said the onus for credit card regulation, when it comes to online gambling, should be on financial institutions. „In this context, the committee recognises the central role of financial institutions to issue and operate credit cards in accordance with relevant legislation,“ the committee wrote in its report assessing the Bill.
