June 1 (Reuters) – Australia’s New South Wales gaming regulator said on Monday that it had fined Star Entertainment’s Sydney casino a total of A$10 million ($7.18 million) for systemic failures related to historical financial crime risks. An enforceable undertaking to set aside a further A$5 million was issued by the NSW Independent Casino Commission […]
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Australian state regulator fines Star Sydney $7.2 million for risk management failures
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June 1 (Reuters) – Australia’s New South Wales gaming regulator said on Monday that it had fined Star Entertainment’s Sydney casino a total of A$10 million ($7.18 million) for systemic failures related to historical financial crime risks.
An enforceable undertaking to set aside a further A$5 million was issued by the NSW Independent Casino Commission (NICC), along with the fines, to strengthen the technology used by The Star Sydney’s financial crime risk management operations.
The fines come on the heels of Star’s Sydney licence remaining suspended until further notice, with the casino continuing to remain under an NICC-appointed manager.
The NICC said that Liquor and Gaming NSW investigated thousands of breaches at The Star Sydney last year, occurring between December 2018 and September 2025.
Many of the breaches listed were detected through the casino’s ongoing remediation program and subsequent investigations. Some of the matters were also self-reported by The Star, the NICC added.
NICC Chief Commissioner Philip Crawford said that while breaches of the Casino Control Act 1992 were concerning, many had occurred before more systematic remediation processes had been implemented, including technology upgrades such as carded play.
“Imposing these fines along with the enforceable undertaking reiterates the seriousness with which the NICC considers any breaches that leave customers vulnerable to gambling harm or casinos vulnerable to criminal infiltration,” Crawford added.
Star noted the NICC’s announcement in a separate exchange filing after market hours and said that the regulator has allowed the company to pay these penalties progressively up until June 30, 2027.
“We will continue to engage constructively with the NICC in respect of The Star Sydney as we work through our remediation program,” Chief Executive Bruce Mathieson Jr said in the statement.
The embattled casino operator swung to a sequential third-quarter loss from a profit, hurt by seasonal weakness and lower table games revenue.
($1 = 1.3922 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Nikita Maria Jino in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)