May 2024
Giles scandal shows we disdain bureaucracies until we need services
Slashing the capabilities of government departments means that in the real world, dodgy characters escape scrutiny and genuine needs go unanswered.
May 2022
Star Entertainment’s Gerard Bradley an old hand
With the directors’ club drowning in red tape these days, it’s understandable that due diligence should take a back seat.
September 2021
Crown’s directors must be thoroughly sick of each other
While some of Crown’s board have been accused of insufficient regulatory scepticism or curiosity, none could be accused of not ... well, turning up.
Crown’s huge golden parachutes revealed
Former Crown Resorts chief executive Ken Barton has walked away from the beleaguered casino giant with a colossal golden handshake.
Switkowski resigns from RMIT as union claims scalp
Ziggy Switkowski is to step down as the university’s chancellor. It follows an open letter calling for his resignation.
Can Ziggy save Crown Melbourne?
Crown Resorts’ financial calculus will have paid off handsomely if the casino giant is allowed to retain its Melbourne casino licence.
August 2021
Switkowski to replace Coonan at Crown
Former Telstra CEO Ziggy Switkowski will take on the job of steering Crown Resorts through its regulatory storm, succeeding Helen Coonan as chairman.
Karl Bitar leaving Crown Resorts
The executive decks have been reshuffled at Crown Resorts and Qantas Airways.
Crown’s investors double down on their bets
The gaming giant committed a big tactical blunder in not appointing a new chairman earlier because it undermines the credibility of its commitment to reform.
‘Fink’ deflects Crown’s plea for mercy
The royal commission is coming down to a question of how big the casino operator’s punishment for past sins should be – and the nuclear option is on the table.
Coonan to exit by month’s end as Crown pushes to retain licence
Confirmation of Helen Coonan’s early departure followed the resignation on Tuesday of the company’s Melbourne CEO Xavier Walsh.
Finkelstein investigating Crown casino and hotel separation
Helen Coonan to leave Crown by month’s end; Crown’s Melbourne CEO Xavier Walsh has also stepped down; Victorian government has announced a new dedicated gambling regulator. Read how closing submissions to the Victorian royal commission unfolded here.
Crown Resorts investors are spooked
While investors are spooked, analysts are telling them to hold their nerve.
July 2021
Director tips bucket on Perth casino leadership
The woman who leads the Kerry Stokes media empire in WA and and sits a Crown-controlled board calls for independent leadership of the Perth casino.
Crown directors’ bonuses in doubt as BEAR considered for casino execs
The banking executive accountability regime should apply to gaming executives to ensure Crown’s lawbreaking is not repeated, royal commission lawyers say.
Crown has lost the nation’s trust - but maybe not its licence
The royal commission has shown Crown has lost the community’s trust. But pragmatic politics means it’s still some way from losing its Melbourne licence.
Crown ‘not fit to run Vic casino’
Crown Resorts should be stripped of Victoria’s sole casino licence and axe executive chairman Helen Coonan and Crown Melbourne CEO Xavier Walsh, inquiry told.
How James Packer killed his golden egg-laying goose
Crown Resorts’ long-standing habit of grudgingly doing the minimum to comply with its legal and social responsibilities looks set to cost the billionaire dear.
Writing is on the wall for Coonan
Crown Resorts will probably offer up some corporate scalps now that it realises there is a huge risk it will be found unfit to operate its Melbourne casino.
Barrenjoey, UBS really give a Gonski
For all of Australia’s maturation as a capital market, Sydney is no less clubby.