Laundering Money at the St. Francis.

Meet Arnold Batliner, who for 31 years ran the money laundering operation of the Westin St. Francis:

Since 1938, The Westin St. Francis has operated the world’s only silver coin cleaning operation as a favor to its guests. This custom began when the hotel’s manager insisted that the silver coins – the currency of the day – be cleaned to keep the ladies’ white gloves from getting dirty. Periodically, the change is collected, washed and polished in a silver-burnishing machine, rinsed off and dried under hot lights, then carried back to the front desk. For more than 31 years, Arnold Batliner laundered The St. Francis money – he cleaned an estimated $17 million in change. Today, every taxi driver and cashier in San Francisco knows that if they get mint-clean money, it’s probably from The St. Francis.

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