SkyCity’s Auckland casino has officially commenced the five-day closure period of its casino, as mandated by New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs.
This stems from the DIA’s decision to withdraw its initial application for a temporary suspension of SkyCity’s casino operator’s license.
The original application, filed in September 2023, requested a suspension of approximately 10 days following a complaint from a former customer who gambled at the Auckland casino from 2017 to early 2021. The suspension was later reduced to five days, between Monday and Friday.
The DIA accused SkyCity of failing to adhere to host responsibility regulations concerning the customer’s continuous play.
The five-day closure is expected to impact SkyCity’s underlying earnings by approximately $5 million.
Despite the closure, as of Monday morning no notice had been posted on SkyCity Auckland’s website about the casino closure for the five-day period.
The closure period ends at midnight on Friday, September 13th and only impacts the gaming area.
The company has indicated that during the period it will engage in a ‘learning program’ with staff, with some 700 employees to participate in lieu of their normal gaming responsibilities.
The group notes that the trainings are focused on ‘enhancing customer care, host responsibility and minimizing the risk of financial crime’.
Speaking of the closure, SkyCity Chief Executive Jason Walbridge noted that “everyone at SkyCity has a role to play in rebuilding trust with our customers, shareholders and the public”.
