The once shining reputation of Crown Resorts in the Australian gaming scene now lays tarnished and scuffed thanks to a plethora of allegations of money laundering, war criminals, employee mistreatment, machine tampering, and more levelled at the company. Once a successful monolith, Crown Resorts has been reduced to scrabbling to save the sinking ship of its operations.

The corporation has woefully admitted that it may see itself losing obscenely large sums of money if credit rating agencies don’t start being more generous with their feedback. Unfortunately for Crown, the scales that it hopes will tip in its favour have been upended by the weight of its alleged transgressions.

The Guardian reported that Crown might have to repay more than AUD 175 million ($135 million) if increasingly unfavourable reports from rating agencies continue to pour in. Moody’s downgraded Crown to Baa3 last November, which is only one level from a ‘junk’ rating. Reports indicate that the agency is mulling a further downward rating, following the news that Crown has to face an inquiry by the New South Wales (NSW) Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA) with its casino license hanging in the balance.

Moody’s recently declined to rate the $135 million debt that was offered as euro medium-term notes (EMTN). Crown has held these notes, which reportedly belong to a Japanese investor, for over 14 years. While Moody’s has shied away from the debt, both Fitch and Standard & Poor’s (S&P) have given it a rating of BBB, only two levels above junk.

If Fitch and S&P ultimately withdraw their ratings or list the debt as junk, the holder of the notes would be allowed to claim repayment. The claim could encompass the face value and interest that would have been paid from now up until 2036 when the debt would have matured. Crown appears to have the resources to cover the repayment, but this could cripple the progress on its numerous projects.

Crown’s projects are already potentially in peril, with their fate in the hands of the NSW inquiry. Moody’s has asserted that Crown’s future is almost entirely dependent on the findings of the investigation. In a communication from November 2020, the agency stated,

“We also view there to be an increasing likelihood of material downside implications from the escalating regulatory investigations Crown is facing. These could include large fines and/or changes to Crown’s licensing conditions in Sydney, with license loss being the most severe, although still unlikely, outcome. ILGA’s review also raises the potential for regulators of Crown’s operations in Victoria and Western Australia to undertake their own reviews, with possible negative consequences for Crown’s business in those states.”​

Neteller’s history in the e-money transfer service industry has earned it a sterling reputation for innovation and service delivery. Not satisfied with resting on its laurels, the company recently completed a dramatic update that includes a shiny new interface with a host of feature enhancements.

Overall the updates serve to make life more efficient for all the app users; however, Business customers will likely be particularly interested in the enhanced transaction history reporting and multiple wallet option access.

Sending and spending money while on the move is a facility the app’s individual users regularly employ, so the ability to hold multiple currencies in a single account is a welcomed addition. Users also have simplified access to their transaction histories which can be viewed via the users’ past purchases. One of the most critical additions has been the inclusion of cryptocurrencies, which can now be automatically bought and sold.

Holistic progression

The CEO of Neteller, Lorenzo Pellegrino, spoke about how the company is “excited about this 2020 milestone and bringing these new features to market.”

He elaborated, stating that the upgrade brought together “a strengthened technology platform with the technical expertise of our team. The result is a full refresh to the Neteller service. Making life ever easier for our users stands at the heart of the revamped design and new features.”

“Making life even easier for our users is at the heart of these enhancements, and we’re confident that they will ensure the best experience possible,” He wrapped up

Neteller’s focus appears to be firmly on making improvements to expand its app’s appeal. New depositing options have now been added, including popular services like Paysafe’s Rapid Transfer, Paysafecard, and Paysafecash. In addition, users from more parts of the globe can now enjoy the app’s great features with the inclusion of, French, Spanish, Italian, and Brazilian Portuguese in its language options.

For speed’s sake, the app now allows for faster money remittances as well as instant transfers to other Neteller users. The cherry on top for individual users will be the ability to send money transfers to friends or family with only mobile numbers or email addresses.

Monday, January 11^th was a sombre day for many in the casino industry as it marked the passing of billionaire and casino industry veteran, Sheldon Adelson. Adelson was 87 at the time of his death, and he leaves behind a rich legacy as the founder, CEO, and chairman of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation.

He will be mourned most by his second wife, Miriam, their four adopted children, and 11 grandchildren. In September 2020, Forbes had his financial worth estimated at $33.5 billion, which would make him the 28th-richest person on the planet.

A retrospective

Adelson’s story is one of vanquished adversity, and while all the details are too numerous to list, a brief look back on his life reveals an inspirational tale.

The child of immigrants, he was born Sheldon Gary Adelson on August 4th, 1933, in Boston, Massachusetts. His upbringing was one of poverty, and he spent many years of his childhood sleeping on the floor.

At age 12, he showed early initiative, borrowing $200 from his uncle and obtaining a newspaper seller’s license. Three years later, he successfully borrowed $10,000 from his uncle to start a candy vending machine business. After a failed attempt at becoming a court reporter, he enlisted with the military.

Adelson’s early adulthood was no less tumultuous, and by his thirties, he had obtained and lost wealth a few times over. He seemed to find his groove in the late 70s when he and his business partners launched the COMDEX trade show for the computer industry. COMDEX grew to become one of the largest computer trade shows in the world for over 20 years. Once it was sold in 1995, Adelson walked away with a tidy $500 million.

Adelson’s entry into the casino industry came about in 1988 when he purchased the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas for a sum of $110 million. Three years later, while spending his honeymoon in Venice with his second wife, he had the inspiration to create a mega-resort hotel.

This led to the demolition and of The Sands and the construction of a new venue, an exercise that cost approximately $1.5 billion. The Venetian first opened its doors in May of 1999.

In 2004 Adelson opened the Sands Macao, the first Vegas-style casino in China, and in 2006 he opened the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, a project that cost $5.5 billion. The Venetian Macao opened for $2.4 billion a year later.

In 2015, Adelson acquired the Las Vegas Review-Journal newspaper for $140 million, triggering the resignations of many editors and reporters who cited “curtailed editorial freedom, murky business dealings, and unethical managers” as reasons.

In February 2019, the Las Vegas Sands announced that Adelson was receiving treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Targeted altruism

Adelson was famous for his frequent donations to the causes closest to his heart.

In 2006, he donated $25 million to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, and in 2007 he began regular contributions to Birthright Israel a non-profit organisation that facilitates trips for Jewish youth to Israel The total contributions from the Adelson Family totalled $140 million.

2010 saw Adelson donate $1 million to a political action committee supporting former Republican Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich. He made further political donations in the 2012 presidential election cycle, where he shelled out $92 million in support of losing Republican candidates, including Gingrich and Mitt Romney.

In 2014 Adelson donated $4 million to stem the legalisation of medical marijuana. He was a fierce opponent of the use of cannabis, which he characterised as a gateway drug. This position likely originated from the death of his adopted son, Mitchell, who had passed away after a heroin and cocaine overdose.

In the same year, Adelson donated $5 million to the Friends of the Israeli Defence Forces. And in September of 2016, he gifted $65 million to the Republican electoral campaign, $25 million of which went to Donald Trump. Following Trump’s presidential victory, Adelson generously handed over another $5 million for the inaugural celebrations.

If nothing else, Adelson was consistent, in 2016, he again contributed towards the fight against the legalisation of marijuana, donating $1 million in Massachusetts and further $1.5 million in Florida.

In 2018, the Republican Party received $113 million from Adelson in support of their efforts in the U.S. election cycle.

In the decade spanning 2010 to 2020, Adelson and his wife donated over $500 million to campaigns and super PACs in favour of the Republican Party.

PayID, a new Digital Wallet payment option is available at selected real money casinos in Australia with Fair Go Casino being one of the latest sites to integrate this banking method.

Using PayID at Fair Go Casino allows for fast and secure transactions with a user-friendly process, providing real-time payments that can process within a few minutes.

PayID is recommended for regular real-money players at Fair Go casino and there is a bonus available whenever you use this banking method.

What is PayID?

The PayID banking innovation allows you to make payments with online platforms like online stores and casinos. This payment method utilises a unique universal payment identifier that creates a secure process where you can safely deposit and withdraw money at online platforms.

This unique identifier that could be your mobile number or email address is required for you to connect with your bank account and process transactions.

Once your PayID number is linked, it can immediately be used for making payments. Your real account number remains hidden, making this a secure option for transactions at real money casinos.

How do I use it?

PayID eliminates the need for you to directly access your banking platform when performing online transactions.  When transacting on your casino account, you will be able to enter your PayID identifier on the banking page to process deposits and withdrawals.

Become a PayID user

You can create your PayID account through a financial organization or online banking. As stated above, Your PayID is either your mobile number or email address that will enable you to securely link to your bank account. The PayID registration process requires that you verify your identity.

Using PayID at Fair Go Casino

For new players, the first step is to visit Fair Go Casino and create your account. Thereafter, you can head to the Deposit/ Cashier section, and select PayID as your deposit method. You will need to fill in your deposit amount, ensuring it is correct, and follow the on-screen prompts to finalise the deposit.

What about the bonus?

Depositing at Fair Go Casino with the PayID payment option allows you to claim a payment bonus of 350% up to $3000 and 150 free spins on Plentiful Treasure when you use the coupon code, DEPOSITPAYID.

The pro’s of using PAyID at Fair Go 

Your PayID identifier obscures your sensitive bank details and your PayID is unique to you and easy to remember. Fair Go Casino has committed to keeping your PayID safe and will not share this information with any third parties.  PayID transactions are secured and encrypted via an extra layer of protection.​

2020 has not been the best year for Crown Resorts. The global pandemic aside, the largest gambling and entertainment company in Australia, has faced numerous allegations including charges of money laundering. Every time one glances at the news there seem to be fresh revelations of misconduct by the beleaguered brand.

As if its woes weren’t enough, Crown Resorts has recently had a couple of new lawsuits levelled against it that could prove to be the final nail in the flagging company’s coffin.

Class-action

As its stock price plummets and its plans to open a new casino in Sydney have been waylaid, Crown Resorts also has to reckon with a class-action lawsuit. The legal action was launched by the Maurice Blackburn Lawyers law firm that argues that the questionable conduct of Crown executives is responsible for its stock price’s freefall.

The law firm had faced Crown in court before with a legal confrontation in 2017 when Crown’s stock took a severe hit after it was found to violate Chinese laws that prohibit marketing to locals.

Blackburn attorney Miranda Nagy said, “We believe these governance failures have caused real loss to shareholders who would have expected best-practice compliance with anti-money laundering obligations, especially given Crown’s repeated public statements that it took compliance with such laws seriously. Instead, it appears Crown’s systems left the company potentially exposed to criminal activity happening on its premises and through its bank accounts.”

This lawsuit spans six years, allowing anyone who purchased stock from December 11th, 2014 to October 18th, 2020 to throw their hat in the ring. The suit demands compensation as well as the requirement that Crown buys back investor shares at an equitable price.

A fresh salvo

The second recent lawsuit that Crown has to deal with was brought to the fore by a former employee, Jenny Jiang.

In 2016, Ms. Jiang was employed as an administrative assistant at Crown’s Shanghai operation. She alleges that one of her primary responsibilities was to market Crown casinos to potential Chinese high rollers. This is an illegal practice in China and Ms. Jiang was soon arrested along with 18 of her colleagues.

In an interview, she relayed the impact the event has had on her life.

“Every year, the night we’ve been arrested, it feels like an anniversary for us,” Jenny said. “But it wasn’t a good memory because you remember that forever.”

Ms Jiang was accosted by police and detained due to her transgressions at the instruction of her employer. According to her, the criminal record that she now has in China has made finding employment an impossible task.

The wrath of the betrayed

Suffering through this incident inspired Ms Jiang to turn whistle-blower after the incident, alerting the press to Crown’s behaviour. She was subsequently fired, an action Crown chairperson Helen Coonan later described as “highly inappropriate.” The company also reportedly smeared her in the media when they referred to her as a “gold-digger.”

Jiang accused the company of slander, and after demanding an apology that never came, she filed a lawsuit to salvage her reputation.

In an interview with ABC News, Australia, she laid bare her accusations, “Crown operated in China without care to their staff. Their actions hurt me and my family. They have not been held accountable. I want justice.”

The lawsuit seeks to compensate her for her alleged ill-treatment and the emotional suffering caused by her arrest. According to Jiang, “We brought so much revenue, so much business and profit for Crown. And we were just dumped like a used napkin. That’s why I feel so angry. I feel so upset with what happened and what they’re saying about me.”

Crown seems to have erred once again in its judgment, as a simple apology may have helped the company avoid this latest legal headache. As things stand, this small oversight may lead to enormous consequences.

Recently, online video game portals have found themselves facing unprecedented numbers of malicious cyber-attacks. This development can partially be attributed to restrictions related to  COVID-19 that may be driving some individuals to seek out less than wholesome, creative outlets.

Distributed-denial of service (DDoS) mitigation specialist, NexusGuard revealed in its third-quarter threat report that real-money online gambling and free-play/virtual currency online gaming operators are currently the two most popular DDoS targets in Q3. The report also showed that real-money operators, by comparison, are understandably dedicating a lot more resources to battling this scourge.

The NexusGuard report also included figures that indicate that online gambling accounted for 45.2% of all DDoS attacks in the three months ending September 30, with online gaming standing at 31.7%. In non-gaming sectors like business, government, education, and finance, the number of attacks recorded was significantly lower.

The report also reveals that the total number of attacks represents a dramatic increase as they have increased by 287% from Q3 2019. However, the number had fallen by 51.3% from Q2 when pandemic lockdown restrictions were at their strictest.

The report revealed that while online gambling operators are universally prepared to fight off DDoS attacks, online gaming operators seem to be largely vulnerable. The fact that online gaming platforms are “extremely sensitive to latency and availability issues,” they’ are often irresistible targets for DDoS attacks.

While some coordinated hackers use this method to hold platforms to ransom, the report indicates that a large number of ‘regular’ gamers are employing highly competitively priced  DDOS-for-hire services to launch attacks at rival players. French gaming giant Ubisoft reported a dramatic increase in attacks in January that targeted its Rainbow Six Siege game. These were most likely precipitated by a recent reset of global player rankings with some players targeting their rivals and forcing them to disconnect so that the attacker can claim the win by default.

The online gambling industry has good reason for its overzealous approach to online security as “significantly more complex” attacks are Levelled at it, in comparison to online gaming. 41.5% of attacks on online gambling operations were multi-vector assaults, compared to a figure of 6.4% regarding online gaming attacks. Almost 73% of DDoS attacks in Q3 lasted 90 minutes or less; however, 1.25% exceeded 1200 minutes. One particularly severe attack lasted a total of 34,551 minutes.

The report named China as the major source of attacks in Q3, contributing almost 32%. Turkey had the similarly dubious distinction of being second place with a figure of 13.9% narrowly edging out the US, which contributed to 13.75% of the attacks. The rest of the top 10 list is made up exclusively of  Asia-Pacific nations.​

Some of Crown Resorts’ high-roller customers will have soon have to prove their worth as the brand has instructed them to provide evidence that they possess assets worth over $2.5 million or that they earn more than $250,000 a year. This formed part of a delayed initiative to eliminate money laundering at its Melbourne and Perth casinos.

Some ‘black card’ holders have received declaration forms and will also have to verify their wealth or salaries by a professional accountant.  Some will also need to disclose their occupation, employment, and/or business ownership information for verification.

Failing to meet the above requirements could result in players being banned from Crown’s gaming tables or having their reward membership services, which include access to VIP rooms, terminated.

Crown issued a warning to those required to submit declarations that their information will be utilised for customer identification processes and could be shared with government agencies or “third parties for the purpose of undertaking additional checks”.

Questions levelled at Crown by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald went unanswered with the company refusing to confirm whether other high-roller classes, including platinum, gold, and silver card holders, would also need to make declarations regarding their wealth, salaries, and employment information.

This recent development is a result of an inquiry by the NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority that exposed a myriad of oversight failures, most specifically at Crown’s flagship Melbourne casino.

The public inquiry, which took over 60 days, revealed a succession of “specific failings and shortcomings” that include recurring non-compliance with anti-money-laundering laws, ties to dodgy junket operators in China, and the “deleterious” impact of the continued presence of major shareholder, James Packer.

Crown management confessed that the company’s approach to curbing money-laundering has been severely inadequate and promised to implement a series of new compliance measures.

Naomi Sharp, SC, the counsel assisting the inquiry, criticised Crown, saying that their actions and promises were “too little too late”.

The opening of Crown’s $2 billion Barangaroo Casino in Sydney has been indefinitely delayed as a result of the process.

Ms Sharp relayed to the inquiry that “Crown Sydney is not suitable … to hold the licence and Crown Resorts is not suitable to be a close associate of the licensee”.

In September 2019, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre tabled its reservations regarding Crown’s operations during a compliance assessment of Crown Melbourne’s management of customers. The organisation stated that Crown was “identified as high-risk and politically exposed persons”.

That AUSTRAC probe followed soon after The Age, the Herald and 60 Minutes broke the news that some of Crown’s most valuable high roller “junket” tour partners were in cahoots with influential Asian criminal syndicates and money launderers. This revelation ultimately resulted in the initiation of the NSW inquiry.

AUSTRAC chief executive Nicole Rose sent out a renewed warning regarding the junket sector, stating that they are the source of numerous criminal threats to the Australian casino industry.

She elaborated further in a statement, saying, “Money laundering and financial crime enables serious criminal activity, such as drug trafficking and human trafficking, which causes harm to our communities.”​

While most Australian casinos are currently locked in their respective struggles to operate under constraints brought on by the Coronavirus pandemic, Crown resorts is embroiled in an altogether different fight for survival.

SkyCity Entertainment Group reported recently that its Skycity Adelaide venue would reopen on a limited basis following the lifting of some restrictions enacted by the South Australian government.

SkyCity Adelaide now only accommodates 100 members of the company’s Premier Rewards at any given time. Physical distancing measures have been implemented, and a limited number of gaming machines are available with limits of people per game table also being imposed.

Over the state line in Victoria, Crown Melbourne announced it would be complying with new measures from the state government, limiting seating capacity to 1,000 customers and capping client numbers in interior spaces to 150 clients or one person for every 4 square meters.

The company is currently awaiting the opening of its Metropol hotel on December 1, 2020.

Blackstone Group throws its hat in the ring

The US-based Blackstone Group seems to be positioning itself to take over Crown to preserve the embattled operator’s gaming license in New South Wales (NSW).

Crown is currently under investigation by NSW for several alleged regulatory transgressions at its Melbourne and Perth properties. For this, a temporary ban was imposed on the games at Crown Sydney.

The operator has asked for a monitored ‘proof of work’ of its Crown Sydney casino activities from NSW. Still, the operator has long fallen out of the good graces of the government, following a spate of recent accusations around the violation of anti-money laundering regulations.

Blackstone acquired a 10% stake in Crown earlier in 2020, after the operator’s largest shareholder, James Packer attempted to sell off 20% of the company to transfer it to Melco Resorts & Entertainment, the operator’s former joint venture partner.

Blackstone applied to the New South Wales gaming regulator in October 2020, requesting that it be allowed to increase its stake in Crown. This may not be enough to wholly save Crown as most feel that the operator would need to remove its entire leadership and management team, providing a clean slate that would likely lead NSW to approve the games at Crown Sydney.

According to a Reuters report, Blackstone is prepared to meet this condition. Packer himself stands to lose substantially from a deal of this sort as his 36% stake in Crown has been devalued following the dramatic fall of the company’s share price in response to the public allegations.

Moody’s downgrade

To add to Crown’s woes, Moody’s Investors Service recently downgraded the company’s credit rating to Baa3 which means there is only one notch standing between Crown and junk status. This is due to “an increasing likelihood of significant negative implications from the growing regulatory investigations Crown faces” at every turn in New South Wales, Victoria, and at a federal level.

Packer will likely see his shares reduce further in value once the NSW investigation, scheduled for February, concludes.  The worst-case scenario for the operator is that the report could recommend that Crown Sydney’s gaming license be fully revoked. On the other hand, Crown could see minimal penalties being imposed on its gambling operations.​