Australia’s Star Entertainment Group has named two interim executives following the departure of Executive Chairman John O’Neill. Geoff Hogg will serve as interim CEO and Director Ben Heap was tapped as acting chairman and group executive of operations. Both will assume their new roles on June 1 assuming regulatory approval as the company searches for permanent replacements.
O’Neill announced his resignation as both executive chairman and director ahead of his appearance last week at a public hearing into Star’s suitability to retain its casino license for the Star Sydney.
A week earlier, Hogg was named interim chief casino officer for New South Wales and Queensland following the departure of three more senior executives, also casualties of the public inquiry. Managing Director and CEO Matt Bekier was also forced out after acknowledging that he was not kept informed of special treatment for high rollers that included allowing them to disguise their gambling spend as hotel and travel expenses, among other regulatory breaches.
Per Inside Asian Gaming, Star has also announced that it has suspended all domestic and international rebate play programs in the wake of issues raised during the ongoing review into its Sydney casino.
Those issues have primarily centered around Star’s relationship with Asian junket promoters, including liberties granted to leading junket Suncity Group in operating its own VIP room at the Star Sydney and the illegal use of China Union Pay cards by Star to disguise gambling transactions.
O’Neill will officially depart on May 31.
As reported by ABC News Australia, Star has shed around 15 directors and executives since the inquiry began. CEO Matt Bekier stepped down in April followed by Oliver White, general counsel corporate; Harry Theodore, chief financial officer and Paul Martin, chief legal and risk officer. Group general counsel Andrew Power; group compliance manager Graham Stevens; regulatory manager, New South Wales, David Aloi; general manager social responsibility, Micheil Brodie and Skye Arnott, chief financial crime officer have also resigned.
In testimony last week, O’Neill conceded that there had been “been examples of untruthfulness, errors of judgment, lack of oversight” by the company’s senior management and that “bad habits” were not checked. The scenario at Star mirrored that at its chief rival, Crown Resorts, which faced similar allegations and ultimately was found unsuitable to hold a gaming license in all three states in which it operates.
The Sydney Morning Herald suggested that Star is now a “sitting duck” for potential bidders—just like Crown, which became the target of multiple takeover bids after its compliance woes became public. Crown agreed to be acquired by the U.S.-based Blackstone Group after a similar purge of senior management and an overhaul of its compliance and other business practices.
“In our risk and compliance operation, we have not been anywhere near as good as we should have been,” O’Neill said. “It doesn’t cast a favorable light on our culture of compliance at all.”
