Poker Writer
Taiwanese prosecutors have indicted 10 people for operating a complex cross-border money laundering ring that utilized Macau casinos to clean as much as $1 billion in credit card funds.
Authorities in Yunlin District, on Taiwan’s Eastern coast, said they cracked the case after an extended investigation with the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB), which began in the second half of 2025.
Raids were carried out in Taipei, Taichung, and New Taipei. Two dozen people were arrested throughout the raids.
The 10 indicted individuals, who were mostly in the 35 to 40 age range, used Macau casinos, which have been beating forecasted tax revenues, to launder funds that were obtained in mainland China.
The primary suspects were a 37-year-old man with the surname Chen and a 36-year-old man named Lin who remains at large with a 20-year arrest warrant.
The individuals set up accounts to conceal the source of funds, which were then deposited into select accounts of the money launderers. They then used unusually high credit card spending limits.
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Macau Casino Scheme
The schemers traveled to Macau and purchased casino chips. They briefly gambled with them before exchanging them again for cash. This was done to make it seem like the funds were obtained legally in Macau.
Six casino operators in Macau submitted a total of 3,603 suspicious transaction reports related to money laundering.
According to the CIB, it was the first cross-border money laundering case using casinos that Taiwanese authorities discovered.
The amount of money laundered ended up being more than a staggering $33 billion in New Taiwan dollars, about equal to $1 billion. The money flowing into Taiwan was significant. Authorities said the scale of the operation posed significant danger:
The amount of money involved was enormous, seriously endangering Taiwan’s financial order.
