The Federal Court of Australia has imposed penalties on former Star Entertainment CEO Matt Bekier and former General Counsel and Chief Legal and Risk Officer Paula Martin.
Bekier has been fined A$700,000 and disqualified from managing corporations for six years. Martin has been fined A$400,000 and disqualified for seven years. Both directors have also been ordered to pay 45 per cent of the legal costs incurred by ASIC.
In December 2022, ASIC commenced proceedings against 11 current and former directors and executives of Star, as the level of governance failures from widespread public concern around the company, its casino operations and its relationships with junket operators, had significantly increased.
The Court found that Bekier failed to appropriately respond to the issues highlighted in a KPMG review of Star’s anti-money laundering framework and failed to manage the risks associated with Suncity – the Asian junket operator that was running operations through the Star Sydney VIP salon, Salon 95. The Court found that Martin also failed to appropriately advise the board of the risks associated with Suncity, and misled the National Australia Bank about the use of China Union Pay cards by customers at Star. ASIC has estimated that over AUD900 million was processed on those cards from 2013 to 2019.
As such, the Star Sydney casino’s current licence is suspended and an external manager, Nick Weeks, will run the casino until at least after 30 September 2026.
