Crown Resorts inspection results: the reason for the general director dismissal

Since the beginning of 2021, Australia’s largest casino, Crown Resorts, has become the hottest topic of discussion. It all started with that a few days after the state inspection at Crown Resorts its CEO Ken Barton resigned from the company. As a result of the inspection the popular Australian casino, which operates since 2007, will not be able to get a license to provide services in Sydney. It is what the ex-CEO Crown has confirmed in the interview.

The inspection was lead by the New South Wales Gambling Commission. The Commission has found out that Crown Resorts violated the operation rules in China during the period of restrictions and thereby put staff at risk. All for the sake of gambling visitors so they could keep generating profits, which is what Crown has been “famous” for lately. For example, in June 2021, a customer of Crown’s Melbourne was allowed to play for more than 34 hours in a row, while the rules say that after 12 hours of continuous play the visitor should be checked by staff, which this time was not done.

In addition to the case in China, it became clear during the inspection that Crown bank accounts were used for money laundering. The casino also had close relationships with tour organizers involving visits to gambling establishments that could be linked to criminal activity.

Casino critic and researcher Charles Livingston put it this way about Crown Resorts: “Crown is a harm factory.” These words are not speculation and here is why this is the case: the casino is open 24 hours a day with virtually no weekends, it is located in the heart of the city, and it has a wide range of entertainment, including high roller rooms. At the same time, he added: “We understand that large casinos provide for a higher level of harm.”

Crown’s annual report, with the exception of Covid-19’s restrictions period, shows that its 2,600 slot machines that generate the highest revenue in the entire state. Profits are about $185,000, while hotels earn about $129,000 and clubs earn barely more than $70,000.

According to a former casino employee, one reason for the high profitability is the high rollers, who are so irresponsible with their money that they can “reward” the staff with tips up to $5,000. It was also clear from the words of a former employee that there are many debtors among Crown visitors who borrow money at high interest rates. Some of these people later become involved in criminal activity in order to repay the debt. However, the company states that an advanced responsible gambling program will be available soon.

Marketing at Crown Resorts works like a charm and as a result – the large number of loyal customers return to the casino and not only because of the excitement but also because of the comfortable conditions: flights on corporate jets, hotel rooms, meals. Privileges depend on how often a player visits the casino: the more often, the higher his level in the loyalty program they will have. 

Until the company finds a new general manager, Helen Coonan, chairman of the board of directors, will take over these duties. At the same time as Ken Barton, several other people left the casino after the inspection. It is not surprising that the company is not allowed to open a new VIP casino in Sydney, but what is surprising is that the inspection reports have steps that the operator can follow to restore its image and continue operations.

The hype around Crown Resorts continues to this day: at least 90% of the news on the Australian gambling market is devoted to this topic. Despite this, the casino continues to operate.

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