A male shopkeeper was fined $10,000 today (May 18) at Tuen Mun Magistrates' Courts after being convicted of operating a money service without a valid licence.
In May last year, Customs officers found that a male shopkeeper had been operating a money changing business at a money exchange shop in Tin Shui Wai after expiry of the money service operator licence.
Under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance, a person who operates a remittance and/or money changing service needs to first obtain a licence from the Customs and Excise Department. The maximum penalty for such operators without a valid licence upon conviction is a fine of $100,000 and imprisonment for six months.
Customs reminds consumers to procure services from licensed money service operators. A register of licensees is accessible from the website of Customs' Money Service Operators Licensing System at eservices.customs.gov.hk/MSOS/wsrh/001s1?request_locale=en.
Members of the public may report any suspected unlicensed money service operation to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).
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