The fitness of Crown Resorts to retain its casino license has been called into question.
Following an eighteen-month inquiry, retired Supreme Court Justice Patricia Bergin issued her concluding report on Crown Resorts, declaring the corporation “unfit” to maintain a casino license within New South Wales. Bergin was appointed to oversee a public investigation into claims that the company’s Melbourne (shown) and Perth gaming establishments were utilized for money laundering and that its gambling excursions may have connections to organized crime. The former justice was charged with ascertaining the company’s suitability to hold a license for its new $2.2 billion AUD ($1.7 billion USD) casino in Sydney’s Barangaroo area. Throughout the inquiry, she unearthed a series of wrongdoings that might have otherwise remained hidden.
“No applicant for a casino permit possessing the characteristics of Crown’s harsh realities would be granted a license in New South Wales, and clearly, those characteristics would render the applicant entirely unsuitable,” Bergin stated. “It is evident that such attributes would make an applicant wholly unsuitable to possess a casino permit in New South Wales.”
Bloomberg notes that Bergin’s report suggests a 10% limit on individual ownership stakes in any casinos. Regulators will convene for a special meeting on February 12th to deliberate on the recommendations and determine whether to enact any of them.
