Crown Sydney has proven itself suitable for holding the license after three years of hard work. The authorities declared its business changed, and the company gained the license for its casino once again.
Steps to regain the license:
In 2021, the NSW Independent Casino Commission decided that Crown Sydney wasn’t suitable to hold its license anymore and assigned them a task: to try to improve business in order to return the license. After that decision, the company took various measures to keep the casino steady. According to Chief Commissioner Philip Crawford, these efforts will continue in order to lift standards and remain stable during the cultural transformation. He added: “There is and will always be room for improvement, but Crown is a changed business that is looking toward the future.”
As News.com.au reports, the casino has allegedly been accused of money laundering and being exposed during one of the public inquiries.
The casino has been open for entertainment only since December 2020, when its license was taken. Back in August 2022, the license for members-only gaming facilities was issued under one condition: the casino had 24 months to improve its operations and conduct a cultural change in the company. Before granting the license again, the regulators had to approve the changes.
On top of that, Crown’s Melbourne casino is in trouble as well. The Royal Commission declared its conduct “illegal, dishonest, unethical and exploitative”; however, the casino was allowed to keep its license. But that’s not the end of the troubles for the Crown – its Perth casino is still working on its plan to recover and remediate, and the deadline is in January. These two casinos had to pay a penalty of $450 million, the highest fine ever charged to a casino.
The safest place to gamble:
The famous Australian company was previously listed by the ASX, and its chairman was a famous billionaire, James Packer. Back in 2022, it was sold to US-based Blackstone, and cost almost $9 billion.
In order to remain above the water, the company had to conduct 432 remediation measures that cost $200 million to satisfy the regulatory requirements.
As The Nightly reports, Mark McWhinnie, the casino’s Chief Executive, commented: “Crown Sydney is the safest place to gamble in the State. Our transformation has laid the pathway for the future so we can exceed the expectations of our guests, team members, stakeholders, and the community.”
Ciaran Carruthers, a Chief Executive of Crown Resorts said that the company was still committed to the casino’s transformation. He added: “The Crown of today has been rebuilt from the inside out. We’ve spent the past two years pioneering a monumental transformation unlike anything seen before in corporate Australia.”
According to Crawford, the regulators will keep their eyes on Crown.
Crown isn’t the only Australian company that has issues with licenses. Its main competitor, Star Entertainment Group, is in the middle of the second inquiry related to its Sydney conduct, which led to dropping its stock prices, which have never been lower.