During a crackdown on gambling, Australia is going after the SkyCity casino for money laundering.
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On Wednesday, Australia’s financial crime regulator started civil proceedings against the Adelaide casino owned by SkyCity Entertainment Group. This is the latest step the government has taken against the gambling industry in the country.
The regulator, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), said that SkyCity, which is listed on the New Zealand bourse, broke anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws. If found guilty, SkyCity could have to pay large fines.
In a statement, AUSTRAC’s Deputy CEO Peter Soros said, “AUSTRAC’s investigation found a number of situations where SkyCity did not do the right ongoing customer due diligence.”
“SkyCity also didn’t make and keep up a compliant AML/CTF program, which put it at risk of being used by criminals,” he said.
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The company’s shares that are traded in New Zealand fell as much as 4%, reaching a low of NZ$2.61—their lowest level since July 14.
In a statement, SkyCity said that the regulator had not yet decided how much of a fine it would ask for. If the federal court agreed with AUSTRAC in whole or in part, SkyCity could have to pay a civil penalty “which may be significant,” it said.
Casino owners in Australia have been hit hard by bad news about breaking anti-money laundering rules, bad management, and bad corporate culture. In the last two years, COVID-19 restrictions have also cut into their profits.
The most recent change comes after an investigation by AUSTRAC in June last year. This was done after investigations in other Australian states found problems with the way Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment Group Ltd. ran their casinos.
AUSTRAC said on Wednesday that investigations into SkyCity found that it broke anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws in a systemic way.
In July, the South Australian government agency in charge of gambling also began an independent review of SkyCity’s Adelaide casino.
Consumer advocates and welfare groups have been pushing the government to look more closely at the gambling industry and put more limits on how much people can spend on gambling. Australia is already the country with the highest per capita gambling losses.
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During the pandemic, the problem got worse because more people got hooked on online gambling.