A NICC spokesperson told this masthead The Star now has six months to prove it is able to operate independently or risk its casino’s doors closing.
“The NICC is not satisfied The Star has reached a point where the licence suspension can be lifted and it can run its casino without the supervision of the manager,” the spokesperson said.
“If they can’t prove they are capable of operating with a conditional licence over the next six months,the manager will be retired,and the doors will close,” the spokesperson continued.
The comments are the first public indication the Sydney business is at risk of its casino operations being shut down by the regulator as early as next year.
The ASX-listed casino businesses told the market last month the NSW and Queensland regulators had extended the terms of their respective independent managers to give the business more time to undertake the necessary remediation steps and be granted a licence to operate in both states. Star said at the time the NICC intended this to be the final extension of the manager’s term.
Queensland’s regulatory authorities recently approved The Star’s remediation plan,which was designed to address the issues identified by the Bell and Gotterson casino reviews. The reviews in both states followed alengthy investigation by this masthead which exposed extensive anti-money laundering and counterterrorism failings across The Star’s three casinos.
But the NSW regulator said the remediation effort demonstrated in Pyrmont had so far been largely attributable to independent manager Nicholas Weeks,who it installed in October last year to oversee the Sydney business after it suspended its casino licence,and not driven by the decisions of Star Sydney itself.