Federal Court Fines Star Entertainment $A260 Million for Laundering Failures

Star Entertainment Group was fined $A260 million by the Federal Court on Wednesday for historical money-laundering violations.

The penalty, equivalent to $NZ323 million, lands on Australia's largest listed casino company just as it faces the prospect of administration. Financial intelligence agency AUSTRAC initiated legal proceedings against the group four years ago, arguing that an $A400 million penalty was required to punish what it described as manifest failures. Star countered that any fine exceeding $A100 million would push the company, which holds a market value of $A763 million, into liquidation.

The legal dispute began when AUSTRAC identified systemic gaps in the company's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing controls. Evidence presented to the court indicated that senior management ignored warnings about high-risk gamblers, including one individual with known criminal links who funneled hundreds of millions of dollars through the casinos. Justice Cameron Moore determined that the company's conduct caused significant harm, leading to the final penalty figure.

"In effect, Star put profit ahead of compliance," Justice Moore said in his determination. The company will now have 19 months to settle the debt through four equal instalments.

The fine follows a period of intense scrutiny involving license suspensions and governance failures across Star's operations in Sydney, the Gold Coast, and Brisbane. In June, former head Matthias Beikir was fined $A700,000 for failing to alert the board to suspicious conduct by Chinese junket operator Suncity between 2018 and 2019. That same month, the Sydney casino received $A10 million in fines for regulatory breaches, including exceeding gaming time limits and failing to vet patrons properly.

US gaming firm Bally's Corp prevented the business from entering administration in April 2025. Soo Kim, chair of Bally's, moved into the same role at Star. At the group's annual general meeting on Tuesday, Kim addressed the ongoing restructuring.

"I didn't come here to say 'mission accomplished'," Kim said. "I came here to say, the fire is out, and now the rebuilding starts." Shares in the company closed at 13 cents on Tuesday, with trading halted for up to two days to allow management to address the fine's impact on the business.