The Federal Court of Australia has ruled on the case against SkyCity, approving the agreement reached between the company and the AUSTRAC last month.
As proposed, SkyCity will pay a penalty of AU$67m, as well as AUSTRAC’s costs of $3m.
Civil proceedings were launched against the company for breaches of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006.
“Criminals will always seek to take advantage of the gambling sector to clean their dirty money,” said AUSTRAC acting CEO, Peter Soros. “If casinos and other gambling entities have weak anti-money laundering systems and controls, they leave themselves vulnerable to criminal exploitation.
“Today’s result shows AUSTRAC is prepared to take action when businesses, including casinos, fail to comply with the legislation. Businesses who ignore their obligations are affecting the Australian community by leaving the door open to criminal activity.
“Money laundering is not a victimless crime. It happens because criminals are trying to clean their dirty money obtained by lucrative illegal activities like trafficking drugs or humans, and it is often reinvested to further criminal enterprises and amplify these harms.”
