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What Are Cashless Pokies And How Do They Work?

Despite its popularity, gambling in Australia has come under scrutiny from both the public and the government in recent years. Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment’s scandals undoubtedly influenced this shift in thinking. When it came to self-policing, safety, and risk management, these two of Australia’s major gaming enterprises fell well short.

Moreover, authorities realized that the efforts required by law to minimize gambling harm on the population and to prevent money laundering are poorly enforced and criminal organizations essentially use slot machines, or pokies as they’re more commonly referred to in Australia, as money laundering ATMs. New solutions were needed.

One of the solutions with the highest projected positive impact is cashless pokies, so in this article, we’ll delve a little bit deeper into the context of how these gaming machines became necessary and how they work.

 

What are cashless pokies?

The Australian government has taken a leading role in promoting the adoption of cashless pokies, which will operate with non-cash gaming tokens for use in land-based casinos. Players will need a digital wallet to play slot machines. The wallet will primarily be used to fund the slot machine.
Still, it will also provide access to responsible gambling tools and services, such as setting spending limits, viewing real-time spending information, taking breaks, and self-excluding. It will not be possible for players to add funds to their digital wallets while physically present in a casino.

The digital wallet verifies the user’s identification before they can play and is connected to the user’s debit card or bank account so that if authorities ever need to, they can track the origin of the money.

The technology enables the setting of limits on aspects such as:

  • The maximum time allowed for a single game session.
  • The maximum number of trips to a casino allowed in a certain time frame.
  • The maximum net spending total during a certain time period.
  • Maximum wagers made overall in a certain time frame.

Users may choose one or more limitations to activate, and once activated, those limits cannot be changed for 24 hours.

As with any new approach some people have expressed concern over cashless payment methods like digital wallets and mobile payments, claiming that they encourage customers to spend more money than they otherwise would. This is due to the fact that they resemble credit and debit cards which have been shown to require less “pain of payment” than physical currency, meaning that cash is preferable for budgeting purposes.

To prevent gambling-related harm and money laundering, different solutions have been proposed. One such solution is the “Ticket in, Ticket Out” method, where players use a paper ticket loaded with cash to wager, with the completed tickets being swapped for fresh ones once the player is done using the machine. This way, casino patrons’ activity can be monitored while also promoting a pause in the game. Another possibility is card-based cashless gaming, where a card containing personal information is swiped or tagged every time a player chooses to pay to play.

 

How did cashless pokies come to be?

In October 2022, the New South Wales gaming authorities and the Newcastle club owned by West Group initiated a test program for the new machines. The new technology was tested on 38 gaming machines, and according to Aristocrat Leisure, one of the world’s leading technological and mobile game creators, around 300 clients were positively affected, prompting authorities to go ahead with further implementation of the new machines.

In addition, the credit limitations for clubs and pubs in Victoria and the NT were $1,000 and $100, respectively, in Queensland and South Australia. Authorities believe that by drastically increasing the restrictions, criminals would be dissuaded from using slot machines to launder illegal funds.

The authorities described a scenario where a criminal could repeatedly withdraw almost all of their cash by losing small bets, making it difficult for authorities to track their money. The commission panel also noted that gambling tickets lack transparency and are not a viable solution for tracking financial transactions.

Despite noting that there is still a long way to go before the 95,000 slot machines in the state are updated or replaced with ones that use the new technology, anti-gambling activists were pleased with the trial’s outcome. However, they warned that if the authorities do not move quickly, it might already be too late when they finally manage the switch.

 

Conclusion

The new cashless pokies will be a welcomed improvement over the previously unregulated machines, as Australian players will be able to enjoy what has become a national pastime with more safety and security.

Casino regulation in Australia has been rethought, and new legislation suggested by gaming regulators reflects this. It is now widely accepted in Australia that casinos as an industry will benefit from stronger regulatory control and that casino operators must uphold a higher standard of accountability.

 

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