WA Royal Commission delivers final Crown Perth report

The Western Australia Royal Commission has delivered its final report one year after it began its inquiry into Crown Perth.

Australia.- The Western Australian Royal Commission into Crown Perth has delivered its findings to prime minister Mark McGowan and premier Kim Beazley. The inquiry was expected to deliver a final report in November but an extension was granted to give commissioners more time to carry out investigations.

The Western Australian government has yet to decide when to publish the report’s findings. The Crown Perth investigation is one of a series of serious investigations into Crown Resorts’ alleged money laundering, criminal infiltration and other problems.

Last week, AUSTRAC, the Australian financial authority announced that it has commenced civil penalty proceedings in Federal Court against Crown Melbourne and Crown Perth. The regulator accuses Crown Resorts of serious and systemic non-compliance with Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) laws.

The proceedings could lead to fines ranging from AU$18m to AU$22.2m per violation. If AUSTRAC’s case succeeds in federal court, the total fine imposed could risk Blackstone Inc.’s planned takeover of Crown.

A fine of more than AU$750m could see Blackstone back out of the deal, according to the terms of the proposed deal filed with the ASX. The deal still needs to be cleared by the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) and by gaming regulators in the states where Crown operates.