SkyCity Entertainment Group has confirmed it has been penalized NZ$4.16 million ($2.6 million) for historic breaches of anti-money laundering and terrorism financing obligations.
The proceedings, filed in February, were for non-compliance with the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering Financing of Terrorism (CTF) Act 2009 by SkyCity Casino Management Limited (SCML).
SCML is a subsidiary of SkyCity and holds its casino operator’s license for operations in Auckland, Hamilton, and Queenstown.
This action followed a review that identified several failures by the casino between February 2018 and March 2023.
In an announcement to the NZX on Thursday, the casino operator confirmed that the High Court had imposed a civil penalty of NZ$4.16 million, which is to be paid to the Department of Internal Affairs within 15 days.
Chief executive Jason Walbridge stated that SkyCity is aware of its responsibility as a casino operator to “combat money laundering and terrorism financing.”
“This is a responsibility we take very seriously. We will continue to upgrade our anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing systems to ensure we meet both our regulatory obligations and the expectations of the communities in which we operate.”
John Sneyd, general manager for regulatory services at the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), expressed satisfaction in reaching a settlement.
“Casinos can be an attractive way for criminals to launder proceeds of crime. We cannot take the risk that criminals might choose New Zealand casinos as a way of cleaning their dirty money. Casinos must have robust processes in place to protect them from misuse.”
“We are satisfied that SkyCity admitted responsibility for their significant failings alongside their continued improvement to meet their AML/CFT obligations to make sure breaches like these don’t happen again.”
In addition to the DIA case in New Zealand, SkyCity has faced penalties in Australia for similar issues.
In May, SkyCity reached an agreement with the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) to pay a civil penalty of AU$67 million ($46 million). This also pertains to historical AML/ CTF failings at its land-based casino in Adelaide.
In June, the Federal Court of Australia approved this agreement to resolve civil penalty proceedings and ordered SkyCity to cover Austrac’s costs of AU$3 million ($2 million).
These settlements negatively impacted SkyCity’s financial performance in 2024. Last month, the company reported a loss of $88.3 million for the year.
