A Finnair pilot arrested with more than $800,000 while on his Melbourne honeymoon thought the cash was his wife's, a court has heard.

A lawyer for Finnish national Lauri Metsaranta, who is charged with dealing with property suspected to be the proceeds of crime, told the Melbourne Magistrates Court his client was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

In a police interview, Metsaranta said he thought the cash was his wealthy wife's money, "like someone owed her money or something", the court heard.

Metsaranta said he did not know he and his common law wife, Changchen Chen, would be collecting the cash en route to their suite at the Hyatt in February, on the Australian leg of a trip that was "sort of a honeymoon".

Chen has also been charged with dealing with property suspected to be the proceeds of crime.

In the interview read to the court, Metsaranta said he had picked up instruments or other small things for his wife before, but the large sum of money was unusual.

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Metsaranta had never met his wife's family, who live in China, but he knew they were very wealthy, the court heard.

He and his wife had known each other about 18 months when they were arrested in Melbourne.

He said when they collected the cash from the Mantra hotel he was not concerned about where it was coming from or where it was going, he was just hoping they wouldn not be robbed.

"To me it felt a little grey area," Metsaranta told police.

"I have to admit I was a little uncomfortable with that much money."

Metsaranta said his wife had received a call after they landed in Melbourne, but he did not know what it was about because he could not speak Mandarin or Cantonese.

They travelled to a second hotel "where a huge pile of money was".

"All I see is the sports bag but I have no idea of the origins of the money," Metsaranta said.

He said his wife dealt with an Asian man at the hotel, but he did not have a conversation with him and had never met him before.