Star Entertainment reported a statutory loss of A$307 million, including asset writedowns, as its auditors again said there was significant doubt over the group’s ability to continue as a going concern. The warning underlined how deeply the casino operator remains exposed to regulatory and financial strain.
As reported earlier this month, the group was already under severe financial and regulatory pressure. Bruce Mathieson Jnr said returning to suitability remained critical to the company’s future, and that the work needed to reach that point was now increasingly embedded in day-to-day operations.
He also said Star had made significant progress against its remediation commitments, which supported submissions to the Queensland and New South Wales governments on whether it is suitable to hold casino licences in those jurisdictions. The company is still waiting for the outcomes of those processes, and the auditors’ concern rests in part on whether Star can absorb an impending AUSTRAC penalty and still pay its bills over the next year.
Star has argued that a fine of more than A$100 million may be beyond its means, while AUSTRAC has said a penalty of about A$400 million would be commensurate with the wrongdoing alleged in the case. A court judgment on the fine could be handed down in September.
AUSTRAC commenced civil penalty proceedings in the Federal Court against The Star Pty Limited and The Star Entertainment QLD Limited for alleged serious and systemic non-compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws. The regulator said the case followed an industry-wide compliance campaign that began in September 2019, an investigation opened in June 2021, and an expansion of that probe in January 2022, and that it had been working with NSW and Queensland gaming regulators and ASIC.
The wider backdrop is the 2022 inquiry into the casino operator after allegations that it enabled suspected money laundering and organised crime in its casinos. The article says gambling revenue has fallen and regulatory costs have mounted following a run of scandals, and the NSW casino regulator has separately ordered an urgent review after a leaked recording and received a report on governance issues, while the NICC asked for a supplementary report on any further matters relevant to Star’s NSW operations. Those NSW matters are separate from the auditors’ warning, which is tied to the AUSTRAC case.
