Crown Resorts has announced the departure of its CEO, Ciarán Carruthers, at year-end, with current President and Chief Operating Officer David Tsai to become Acting CEO from 1 September. Carruthers will remain with the company in the short-term before leaving by the end of the year.
According to a Monday statement from Crown, Carruthers has decided that now is an appropriate time to depart the company, having been appointed shortly after the company’s acquisition by Blackstone in 2022 and steered the business through a period of significant transformation and remediation. Crown was subsequently deemed suitable by regulators in Victoria and NSW to hold a casino license for Crown Melbourne and Crown Sydney respectively.
“It has been a privilege to work alongside Ciarán during this critical period of transformation and remediation which has resulted in Crown retaining its licence to operate in both Victoria and New South Wales, and Western Australia well progressed.
“Under Ciarán’s leadership, Crown has achieved critical milestones including a whole of business transformation and remediation program, the introduction of cashless gaming, mandatory carded play and the successful implementation of its world leading Crown PlaySafe harm minimization program, which has resulted in Crown’s properties becoming the safest places for gaming in the world,” said Crown Resorts Chairman John Borghetti.
“Ciarán’s leadership and contribution has been highly valued, and we wish him every success in the future. We remain focused on turning this company into a world-class resort and entertainment business, which is positioned to thrive long into the future. We look forward to a smooth transition with Ciarán in the coming months.”
Carruthers added, “It has been my privilege to lead the committed and talented team at Crown Resorts, but I feel now is an appropriate time after two and a half years of intensive transformation work to pursue other opportunities and interests. I am very pleased to hand over a stronger, compliant and transformed business to its next leader. There is more work to do, but I am very proud of what we have achieved as a team.”
