Crown Resorts advises placing rigorous oversight over the launch of a new casino
The request for a delay in the casino's launch was made to the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA) of New South Wales just one day before.
The new $2.2 billion building in Barangaroo was supposed to open on December 14 but the ILGA has advised delaying it until after the investigation's findings.
In February 2021, Commissioner Patricia Bergin is scheduled to provide her final report.
With its affiliations with high-roller tour operators purportedly having significant ties to organised crime, Crown is presently the subject of a stringent investigation into allegations of money laundering at its casinos in Melbourne and Perth.
Four years ago, numerous Crown employees were found guilty by Chinese authorities of promoting gambling unlawfully.
However, Bergin was advised by the company's attorney Neil Young, QC, to open the new casino under the close supervision of the ILGA rather than postpone operations.
He stated that Crown could run the facility with updated anti-money laundering procedures, a management reorganisation, and an examination of the operator's culture.
Young further stated that Crown might submit daily reports to the regulator and that the ILGA could place inspectors on its casino floors.
Many of the issues that the authority might want to be satisfied with will necessitate a "working test," according to Young.
Some of them are best handled within the framework of how the casino functions, with close control and assessment of those activities.