The chairman of Crown Resorts says US investment giant Blackstone underestimated the amount of work that would be required to transform the casino giant’s culture and systems following years of scandal, but is confident it is on track to regain its licences early next year.

Veteran US casino executive Bill McBeath, who previously ran The Cosmopolitan resort in Las Vegas under Blackstone’s ownership, said Crown chief executive Ciaran Carruthers and his team had “stripped the business down to the studs from a compliance and procedural standpoint” to win back its licences in Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia.