China Bans Gold Farming

[Alya Mizar (Tsybil)]

http://www.informationweek.com/news/int ... =218101859

From a post somewhere out there in the internets:

Originally Posted by kenp2002
In full disclosure: I work in the financial industry currently.

This ban has nothing to do with gaming, gambling, or local economy.

This is likely a direct response to MASSIVE money laundering.

Joe has $100,000 worth of illicit cash.
Joe strikes a deal to buy $100,000 worth of virtual currency in WoW. Joe smuggles the money. (Many times Joe can even hire the kid down the street and pay him cash...)

Joe turns around and over several months sells the gold BACK to the gold farmers and claims the sales as legitimate income. Selling it at a 50% loss he can convert $100,000 into $50,000 of legitimate funds. Even more so when he acts as a virtual broker (IGN anyone?).

While this is a simplified scenario but we are talking BILLIONS of dollars a year are now going through these kinds of channels.

I've seen locally here in the US $300,000 attempts and laundering money this way (through a combination of FF Online, LOTRO, and Maple).

While it is getting easier to deal with this now that the gaming companies are willing to share some data I can only imagine how hard is must be in Asian markets where channeling cash to chinese gold farmers is easier with the shorter phsyical distances. Oddly though, in my experience, I have seen more Korean and Indian gold farmers then Chinese.

Never had a problem with gold farmers, never will, but I have serious doubts that this ban has anything to do with gameplay.

I think this is in response to the forged bonds that were intercepted in Italy. They are worried about organized crime shifting large sums of money (which require laundering) through the virtual economy.

If I am an evil overlord and I have to get 4 billion to my agents around the world the easiest thing to do is buy a billion dollars worth of WoW gold, have all my agents log in with characters. Divvy up the gold then have them sell it off locally or back to the gold farmers at a loss.

No quicker way to distributed that much real world money then through a network of games.

[Karou Ariyen]

Ha! Karma's a Fugging B!tch.

[Sugami]

Interesting...

To buy fake money you do it through PayPal or credit/debit card, no? Well that means you gotta put money in the bank to pay for it, which you can't do with dirty money, no?

[Karou Ariyen]

Interesting...

To buy fake money you do it through PayPal or credit/debit card, no? Well that means you gotta put money in the bank to pay for it, which you can't do with dirty money, no?

In countries like the US, Canada and Mexico no. In Countries like UK, Germany, and the rest of the world, it's pretty easy to pull off. Russia's government is notorious for that.

[Alya Mizar (Tsybil)]

Strange as it seems, people still use cash.

Personally I would find it difficult to get that much cash to a gold farming company, but every year hundreds of otherwise law abiding millionaires in the US get amounts from the hundreds of thousands to millions to off shore tax dodging bank accounts.

Our law enforcement people know what banks are used and we STILL cannot stop this drain on our taxes.

So how are you going to stop Brogame? For that mater, how are the Chinese?

[Karou Ariyen]

Strange as it seems, people still use cash.

Personally I would find it difficult to get that much cash to a gold farming company, but every year hundreds of otherwise law abiding millionaires in the US get amounts from the hundreds of thousands to millions to off shore tax dodging bank accounts.

Our law enforcement people know what banks are used and we STILL cannot stop this drain on our taxes.

So how are you going to stop Brogame? For that mater, how are the Chinese?

The BBB is investigating Brogame. They made the mistake of having their finances handled by a guy in California. I made a report to the BBB about being "Ripped Off."

[Tivia]

Strange as it seems, people still use cash.

Personally I would find it difficult to get that much cash to a gold farming company, but every year hundreds of otherwise law abiding millionaires in the US get amounts from the hundreds of thousands to millions to off shore tax dodging bank accounts.

Our law enforcement people know what banks are used and we STILL cannot stop this drain on our taxes.

So how are you going to stop Brogame? For that mater, how are the Chinese?

The BBB is investigating Brogame. They made the mistake of having their finances handled by a guy in California. I made a report to the BBB about being "Ripped Off."

Only thing the BBB will do is confirm you never made a transaction with them and that will be the end of it. The BBB doesn't care beyond that.

[Sugami]

Strange as it seems, people still use cash.

Personally I would find it difficult to get that much cash to a gold farming company, but every year hundreds of otherwise law abiding millionaires in the US get amounts from the hundreds of thousands to millions to off shore tax dodging bank accounts.

Our law enforcement people know what banks are used and we STILL cannot stop this drain on our taxes.

So how are you going to stop Brogame? For that mater, how are the Chinese?

How would you get cash to an Internet based "shop"? Send them money in the post?

[Shirai]

Believe it or not, there are internet shops that accept it that way too.

My direct co-worker has a legit internet shop that does accept cash mailings. (She sells all kinds of yarn and such)
And yes, she also sells her stuff off to people abroad.
(I may be taking a small shipment to deliver in Japan for her in August.)

[Alya Mizar (Tsybil)]

How would you get cash to an Internet based "shop"? Send them money in the post?

Never having been involved in money laundering I have no idea. But I know that suitcases full of cash or negotiable securities are not the only way.

I am fairly sure that once you start talking about six figures places like Brogame will make housecalls.

[Sugami]

Suit cases full of cash aren't the only way? I have been deceived!

[Karou Ariyen]

Modern Money Laundering involves massive cash transfers to out of country bank accounts across numerous banks to hide their location.