SkyCity’s Adelaide casino is now facing an investigation by the authorities of South Australia, with the probe being pretty much similar to the ones faced by the gambling operator in other Australian states.
Over the past few years, Australian regulators have been seeking to crack down on local casino operators over potential violations of the country’s anti-money laundering legislation, poor corporate culture, and weak governance. As mentioned above, SkyCity has already been under an ongoing inquiry held by the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) over an alleged serious failure to comply with gambling legislation in its casino in Adelaide in 2021.
The concerns that led to the South Australian probe into the Adelaide casino of the casino operator were linked to potential breaches of required due diligence and management of so-called high-risk and politically exposed customers.
The Liquor and Gaming watchdog of South Australia confirmed that it was reviewing the operations of SkyCity in order to make sure that the company was still fit to hold the operating licence for its Adelaide casino. So far, a number of inquiries into the company’s competitors operating in Australia had found several shortcomings linked exactly to anti-money laundering and terrorist financing, weak governance, poor corporate culture and ineffective customer protection.
Regulatory Review into SkyCity’s Adelaide Casino Set to Be Finalised at the Beginning of February 2023
Dini Soulio, Liquor and Gambling Commissioner in the state, noted that so far, investigations into large casino operators such as Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment, both of which became subject to some inquiries following reports of some violations, have unveiled significant failures on the companies’ part. He further noted that a few issues raised to date extended beyond any specific organisation operating in the sector and instead pointed to vast systemic issues within the Australian casino industry.
The inquiry into SkyCity’s Adelaide casino is set to be headed by Brian Martin AO WC, a retired Supreme Court judge and former Royal Commissioner. The casino company confirmed that it would fully cooperate with the investigation and would provide any information requested in the process. The review of SkyCity’s Adelaide casino is expected to be finalised by February 1st, 2023.
According to Andy Bowley, an analyst from Forsyth Barr, there was nothing to suggest that the probe was initiated by new information that had been unveiled as part of the ongoing investigation held by AUSTRAC into SkyCity. Still, he believes that the investigation is clearly negative for the casino operator, especially considering the fact that the Australian regulators have been trying to impose more restrictions on the sector.
Mr Bowley believes that the bigger issue for SkyCity was whether any potential spillover to the regulatory landscape of New Zealand would happen in the months to come. He shared that the recent investments and improvements of SkyCity in surveillance and anti-money laundering processes could help it reduce the concerns of the Australian watchdogs on a forward basis. These efforts, however, would hardly be enough to protect the casino company from any potential historical issues.
- Author
Olivia Cole
