Star license suspended, operator fined at conclusion of second Bell Report

Star Entertainment Group, the beleaguered casino operator, is facing more regulatory headwinds in its native Australia where the NSW Independent Casino Commission or NICC has suspended the operator’s license and fined it AU$15m ($10m) in Sydney.

The Star Sydney needs to continue working toward regaining capability

The commission, which recently concluded its second Bell Report, is not outright stripping Star of its license but the license will presently remain suspended, as the property makes headway towards regaining it.

Commenting on these events in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange filed on October 18, Star said that it will continue to engage with the NICC in a bid to reinstate The Star Sydney license.

The company was addressing both its troubled financials as well as the newly-emerged regulatory challenges. The Star Sydney and Star Entertainment Group will have a chance to return to normal operation, but not before the entities have complied with a list of recommendations.

The NICC will keep the specially-appointed Manager at The Star until March 31, 2025, at the very least, as it continues to monitor the situation.

Presently, the appointed Manager is Nick Weeks, who will continue with his oversight of the property, as The Star itself is working towards restoring its eligibility to operate independently.

The NICC now expects The Star to take "steps related to the operation of certain committees, as well as The Star’s enhanced customer due diligence process."

NICC Chief Commissioner Philip Crawford said that the second Bell inquiry has led to the identification of further failures and operations at The Star which mandated the AU$15m penalty and the suspension of the license.

More shortcomings and failures to redress, NICC states

Crawford was critical of the way that The Star had acted in certain cases, claiming that although the property and the operator said they had remedied certain aspects of their operations, this was not in fact the case.

"Despite more prescriptive supervision that prevented the type of misconduct seen in the first inquiry, numerous shortcomings in governance, regulatory compliance, technology and risk management remain, including in areas that The Star claimed it had remediated," he said in a press statement.

The NICC did not act completely high-handed and said that it acknowledged the many challenges that the property is facing, but ultimately stated that it will monitor closely how The Star progresses in proving itself capable of regaining its casino license.

The NICC was similarly encouraged by the appointment of Steve McCann, Star’s CEO, and said that McCann has already shown a willingness to communicate.

"However, more work needs to be done before The Star can be regarded as a compliant and responsible operator, deserving of a license," the NICC concluded.

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