New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs will file civil penalty proceedings in the High Court against casino operator SkyCity Entertainment Group in relation to historical non-compliance with the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (Act), SkyCity has revealed.
The proceedings against SkyCity subsidiary, SkyCity Casino Management Limited (SCML), are set to be filed this coming Friday 16 February following a review by the Department of the company’s compliance with the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (Act). SCML is the holder of the casino operator’s licence for the SkyCity Auckland, SkyCity Hamilton and SkyCity Queenstown casinos in New Zealand.
According to SkyCity, the Department has outlined five separate causes of action which allege significant compliance issues in relation to the Act. These, the company added, are largely historical matters and in some instances relate to incidents of non-compliance which have previously been self-reported to the Department.
However, should it be found guilty in whole or in part, the maximum penalty it could face under the Act and relevant case law is NZ$8 million. This is considerably lower than proceedings currently underway in Australia where SkyCity recently revealed it will make an AU$73 million (US$45 million) provision in its 1H24 accounts for looming AUSTRAC penalties against SkyCity Adelaide.
“SkyCity is disappointed that it has not met the standard to which it needs to hold itself, and this has resulted in the action taken by the Department,” the company said.
“SCML and SkyCity will engage constructively with the Department in relation to the proposed proceedings, with a view to resolving these matters expeditiously. Given that the matter will be before the Court, it would be inappropriate for SkyCity to comment further at this stage.”
SkyCity added, “Since late 2021, SkyCity has had in place a significant AML/CFT enhancement programme to address compliance systems and correct historical shortcomings. This has involved, and continues to involve, significant investment in people and technology, and various reviews of SkyCity’s processes and systems to identify areas which require improvement.
“SkyCity is committed to continuing to uplift its processes and systems, particularly with respect to AML/CFT and host responsibility matters.”
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