Crown Melbourne Casino Fined AU$80 Million for Illicit Chinese Payments

Crown Melbourne has been fined a record-breaking AU$80 million (USD 57.6 million) for assisting Chinese gamblers in unlawfully transferring money out of the country. The findings originally surfaced during an inquiry by a royal commission investigating the Crown Resorts establishment. From 2012 to 2016, gamblers could utilize a China Union Pay bank card for gambling activities.

The Royal Commission into Casino Operator and Licence (RCCOL) investigating Crown ruled the China Union Pay mechanism illegal. The probe found that the China Union Pay process violated both section 68(2)(c) and section 124(1) of the Casino Control Act 1991. Section 68 makes it illegal for the Crown to provide money or gaming chips in a transaction using a credit or debit card, as it did with the CUP cards. Section 124 requires Crown to retain specific accounting records to adequately manage the handling of money in Crown Melbourne and guarantee that the firm pays total taxes and other financial responsibilities to the state and public.

Between 2012 and 2016, Chinese citizens were only allowed to transfer a maximum of AU $69,500 (USD 50,000) yearly out of the country and into another jurisdiction. In order to get around this prohibition, Crown Melbourne started providing Chinese gamblers with phony invoices for hotel services. The gambler would pay the fake bill using their China Union Pay card, and the staff would give them a voucher that they could later trade-in for casino chips.