Crown Resorts to pay around US$300 million for AML violations after AUSTRAC agreement

Under an agreement negotiated with AUSTRAC, Crown Resorts will pay a total of AU$450 million (US$293 million) in penalties for prior violations of Australia's anti-money laundering legislation.

Crown Melbourne and Crown Perth will pay a total of AU$450 million under the agreement, which resolves civil penalty proceedings taken against them, for "admitted historical contraventions" of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006. The two parties have also submitted a Statement of Agreed Facts and Admissions with the Federal Court, which will hear the case on July 10 and 11.

“First and foremost, I want to reiterate that these historical failings were unacceptable and on behalf of Crown Resorts, our new owners and leadership, I apologise for the failings of the past,” said Crown Resorts CEO Ciarán Carruthers.

"Today is a significant step forward in the process, and we are pleased to have reached this agreement with AUSTRAC, noting that it is still subject to consideration and approval by the Federal Court, which we await."

"The company that committed these heinous, historic violations is a far cry from the company that exists today." The Crown of today is dedicated to reducing harm and becoming the world leader in the provision of safe gambling and entertainment. To do this, we are focusing on Future Crown, our multi-year transformation programme that is delivering whole-of-company reform and establishing a Crown that surpasses our stakeholders' and community's expectations.

“We take seriously the responsibility we have to the community, to law enforcement, to our industry and stakeholders to ensure that we continue to comply with our AML/CTF obligations. There is no place for money laundering or terrorism financing at Crown or anywhere within our communities, and we will continue to invest in developing a sophisticated and robust framework, supported by the right capabilities to combat this illegal behaviour. We are committed to implementing these reforms to make Crown a better business and lift the standards for the entire industry.”

Crown said in a lengthy release that since recent inquiries in NSW and Victoria, it has implemented a variety of new controls and practises around its AML obligations, including investing more than AU$40 million in bolstering its financial crime compliance and expanding its Financial Crime and Compliance team to around 170 people, among other things.

By fLEXI tEAM