Australian financial crime watchdog widens probe on casinos already reeling from COVID
Reuters, 07 June 2021
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s anti-money-laundering agency on Monday widened a probe into due diligence at casinos to include the three biggest operators, ratcheting up pressure on a sector already struggling with the pandemic and heightened regulatory scrutiny.
Months into an investigation of top player Crown Resorts, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) said it was formally looking into possible breaches of background check rules at rival Star Entertainment Group and New Zealand’s SkyCity Entertainment Group.
That means owners of casinos in Australia’s five most populous cities now face enforcement investigations that could carry fines or restrict their licences.
Crown already has been under intense pressure after an inquiry this year found it unfit for a licence at a just-opened A$2.2 billion ($1.7 billion) Sydney casino, sparking royal commissions in two other states and fueling class-action lawsuits, as well as an AUSTRAC probe that was expanded to its Perth city resort on Monday.
“The Australian casino sector is at risk of criminal misuse due to the products and services they offer,” AUSTRAC CEO Nicole Rose wrote in an editorial published in The Australian newspaper hours before the casino operators disclosed the investigations in market filings.
“We have an enforcement investigation under way at Crown casino that demonstrates the seriousness of our concerns. And we also have significant compliance work under way on the casino sector,” Rose wrote.
