The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac), the national financial intelligence agency operated by the government, has accused some of the nation’s leading land-based casino operators of participating in money laundering operations.
Austrac has accused some of Australia’s top casinos of being involved in money laundering, including Crown Resorts, Star Entertainment, and SkyCity Entertainment Group. The National Australia Bank (NAB) has also been contacted by Austrac.
Austrac, which monitors financial transactions to identify money laundering, organized crime, tax evasion, welfare fraud, and terrorism financing, stated that the accusations relate to “serious violations” of the Australian Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (AML/CTF Act) and the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules Instrument 2007 (AML/CTF Rules).
Crown stated that the notice it received referred to its Crown Perth property, which has been under investigation since last October for potential breaches of regulations.
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The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac), the regulatory body for Crown Resorts, has accused the company of significant violations of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws and regulations. Austrac has initiated a formal inquiry into Crown Perth’s adherence to these regulations.
Crown has also received legal counsel suggesting that a practice at Crown Melbourne between 2012 and 2016 contravened Section 68 of the Victorian Casino Control Act 1991. This practice involved Crown accepting debit or credit card payments from international visitors at the Crown Towers hotel in Crown Melbourne and subsequently providing the funds to these guests for gambling purposes at the casino.
Section 68 of the Act explicitly prohibits casino operators from providing funds or chips in the form of credit or debit card transactions for gambling or betting activities within the casino. Crown processed over A$160 million (£88 million/€102 million/$124 million) through this method, which was discontinued in November 2016.
Crown has stated that investigations are ongoing and has informed the Victorian Gambling and Liquor Commission and the Victorian Royal Commission of the situation.
Concurrently, Star Entertainment has announced that its notification pertains to the Star Sydney property and that the potential breaches relate to concerns regarding ongoing customer due diligence, the implementation and maintenance of anti-money laundering/counter-terrorism financing programs, and compliance with these programs.
The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (Austrac) uncovered these problems during a compliance evaluation in September 2019. The evaluation concentrated on the casino’s administration of patrons recognized as high-risk and politically exposed individuals, spanning the periods from July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016, and July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2019.
Austrac’s enforcement unit will probe the matter, and the organization stated it has not yet determined what regulatory action to take against Star.
Star declared in a statement: “Star takes its anti-money laundering responsibilities very seriously and will fully cooperate with Austrac’s requests for information and documents and the investigation.”
Furthermore, SkyCity stated the accusations pertain to potential serious violations at SkyCity Adelaide, again involving ongoing customer due diligence, adopting and maintaining anti-money laundering/counter-terrorism financing programs, and adhering to such programs.
Austrac discovered these issues during a compliance evaluation in September 2019, which centered on the casino’s management of patrons identified as high-risk and politically exposed persons, covering the periods from July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016, and July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2019.
The organization has not specified what form of regulatory action SkyCity may face but will demand the operator to furnish more information. SkyCity said it will fully cooperate with Austrac’s investigation.
Sky City has declared that they take their anti-money laundering duties and commitments very seriously. They have established processes and practices for recognizing and preventing money laundering in their operations, and these are regularly reviewed to ensure compliance with all anti-money laundering regulations.
In the meantime, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (Austrac) has reached out to the National Australia Bank (NAB) alleging potential violations of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act and Rules. These violations pertain to “potential serious and ongoing breaches” of customer identification procedures, ongoing customer due diligence, and adherence to their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing program.
Austrac’s enforcement team has initiated a formal enforcement investigation into NAB, but has stated that it will not consider civil penalty proceedings. This decision, they explained, “reflects the actions NAB has taken to date.”
NAB has stated that the referral of the case to Austrac’s enforcement team came after “long-standing” regular contact with the agency, both to report issues and to update Austrac on the group’s own improvements and strengthening of its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing program.
The bank added that they have invested around $800 million as part of a multi-year program to enhance their financial crime and fraud controls, and have over 1200 employees dedicated to managing financial crime risk.
NAB CEO Ross McEwan stated: “NAB takes its financial crime obligations very seriously. We recognize that we need to further improve our performance in these matters.”
Weve been diligently striving to enhance our processes, and it’s evident that further effort is required.
The National Bank assumes a critical role in overseeing and reporting questionable actions, safeguarding Australia’s financial framework, our banking institutions, and clientele.
“Elevating our financial crime competencies, curtailing risks to patrons and the bank, and augmenting operational effectiveness are paramount priorities for all at the National Bank. This is why we’re so dedicated to ensuring accuracy in our fundamental operations, to safeguard our customers and the bank.”
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