To launder money in ROB RUN, open a bank account at the Looty Bay Bank as a Civilian, then run your cash through the Laundering Desk at your base. Kefir’s help center says laundering takes time, but it protects your funds from being stolen until the next wipe.
Laundering is the closest thing the game has to a savings plan, since every other place you can keep money can be robbed. Here is what you need, what to do before you own a house, and how to get more through the desk. Figures are launch-week values as of the November 6 build.
What You Need First
- A bank account. You cannot launder without one. Our bank account guide has the steps, and the fee is about $5,000 in cash.
- A home of your own. That means a rented plot with a house on it, and our house guide covers the title and the steps.
- Dirty cash. Anything you earn from robbery, the fence or the Smuggler counts.
How to Launder Money, Step by Step
- Go to the Laundering Desk at your base. Every house has one.
- Load your cash onto it. Kefir massively raised what the desk can hold on November 4.
- Leave it to run. Laundering keeps going while you are offline, so you do not have to wait around.
- Check your account. Clean money arrives in your bank account as the desk works through the pile, and from there it is safe from thieves until the next wipe.
That is also the only way to deposit money in the game. The bank has no cash window for it, and ATMs only hand money out.
How to Launder Without a Base
Pay Lenny. Until you have your own house, Lenny can launder for you, for a cut. There is no such fee at your own base, so this is a stopgap.
Launder on your character. There is also an on-character option at a rate of one clean dollar for every two dirty, holding up to about 100,000 dirty. It halves your money, so keep it for when you are in danger of losing the whole lot.
If you only want to protect cash for a while, Lenny’s stash is free, holds about $150,000 and is safe from theft as of launch week. It is the better first stop for early money.
How to Launder Faster
Laundering speed depends on three things:
- Banknote Counters. These upgrade the desk, at about $10,000 to research and $30,000 to buy. A Trailer has one slot for them and a Small House has three.
- Your settlement’s level. A higher-level settlement launders at a better rate.
- Your clan. Kefir’s Power Pyramid post lists a laundering speed boost among the rewards for a clan that holds a district.
Watch the laundering cable, too. If it is damaged, a 50% penalty applies.
The house also sets how much dirty cash you can hold at once: about 5,000,000 in a Trailer and about 50,000,000 in a Small House. The first of those is plenty until you are running a serious operation, and our money guide shows how to get there.
What It Costs
At your own base in your own settlement, nothing beyond the setup. If you rent in someone else’s settlement, the owner takes a percentage of every laundering you do, and Kefir says owners get a cut of what tenants launder. If you plan to launder huge sums, that is one reason a Settlement Title can pay off.
What Can Still Go Wrong
Cash on the desk is not clean yet. It has not reached your account, and as of the November 6 build a thief can grab up to about $20,000 at a time from a desk. Kefir says a base can be raided with decoders, so put fuses in your Security System.
Withdrawing makes it dirty again. Take money out at an ATM or from a bank employee only when you are about to spend it. It can be lost again from that moment.
The wipe takes it all. Kefir’s protection runs “until the next wipe”. The Federal Raid converts what you hold into jail time and authority every seven days, so laundering is about getting through the week.
What Clean Money Buys
Keep this straight, because the two kinds of money do different jobs. Cash pays for the Black Market and for unlocking goods in the Shipments tree. Clean money is for founding a clan, other clan operations and bribing a cop after an arrest. As of the November 6 build, founding a clan takes about 5,000 in clean money, and bribes come in steps of 10,000 up to 200,000.
So you need some of both. Launder what you want to protect, and keep enough cash to buy your next upgrade.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a house to launder money in ROB RUN? Not strictly. Lenny launders for a cut, and you can launder on your character at half value. The Laundering Desk at your own base is the only way with no fee.
Does laundering continue when I log off? Yes, as of the November 6 build. Load the desk before you stop playing, and the money keeps moving.
How long does laundering take? Kefir says only that it takes time. Banknote Counters, your settlement’s level and your clan’s holdings all affect the speed, and we have no fixed rate to give you.
Can laundered money be stolen? Not from your bank account. Kefir says it is safe until the next wipe. Cash still on the desk is another matter, so treat that as at risk.
Why can’t I launder money? You most likely have no bank account yet. Open one at the Looty Bay Bank as a Civilian, then try the desk again.