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AUSTRAC

This Month

The gaming floor at Crown Resorts’ Sydney casino. The company is now allowed to operate poker machines, however.

Crown Resorts wants to add pokies to the mix at its Sydney casino

The Blackstone-owned hospitality and gambling giant has been prohibited from installing gaming machines under terms struck when it secured its NSW licence.

  • Zoe Samios
Entain is the owner of Ladbrokes.

AUSTRAC sues Ladbrokes and Neds owner

Entain allegedly did not conduct appropriate checks on 17 high-risk customers and deliberately obscured the identity of some through use of pseudonyms.

  • Zoe Samios
AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas.

Tough new dirty money rules to disrupt $60b in criminal activity

The head of Australia’s financial crime watchdog says gaps in anti-money laundering and terror financing rules have been exploited by criminals for too long.

  • Tom McIlroy

November

The government has been warned the plan will further punish potential homebuyers.

Why buying and selling a home is about to cost $1200 more

Amid Australia’s growing housing crisis, a new crackdown on money laundering is expected to add significant extra costs to property transactions.

  • Tom McIlroy
Bar associations are brandishing legal advice as they argue against Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus’ AML/CTF reforms.

Barristers brand anti-money-laundering laws ‘unconstitutional’

Bar associations have leant on advice from a former High Court judge in their latest effort to carve out an exemption to AML/CTF reforms.

  • Maxim Shanahan
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Bar associations are upset with Attorney General Mark Dreyfus’ anti-money laundering bill.

Barristers seek exemption from tougher money-laundering laws

Bar associations are concerned draft AML/CTF legislation will force them to conduct due diligence on clients already conducted by instructing solicitors.

  • Maxim Shanahan

October

BOQ shares were up 4 per cent to $6.52 shortly after trading opened as the market digested the better than expected result.

BoQ accused of short-changing franchisees in buyout

BoQ undervalued franchisee shopfronts in a corporate takeover push and artificially deflated commission payments, a letter to the board alleges.

  • Updated
  • Lucas Baird

Labor, Coalition clash over laws for lawyers, accountants, realtors

Shadow attorney-general Michaelia Cash roundly criticised plans to expand anti-money laundering laws to the three professions.

  • Ronald Mizen

August

Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson.

Business CEOs push back on political grandstanding

Big business makes mistakes as well as money, but chief executives like CBA’s Matt Comyn and Wesfarmers’ Rob Scott are pushing back against “fact-free” accusations.

  • Jennifer Hewett
Bank of Queensland chief Patrick Allaway told staff, “the executive team has made difficult but necessary decisions”.

Business model unsustainable, says BoQ, as it sacks 400 staff

The regional lender will take control of a long-standing franchise network in a $160 million bet on its survival.

  • Updated
  • Lucas Baird

July

Westpac is trying to reduce head office numbers by 20 per cent on 2020 levels by this year.

Prudential watchdog halves $1b Westpac penalty

APRA will slash its $1 billion capital penalty levied on the bank four years after it was first implemented.

  • Lucas Baird

Why diamond studded Swiss watches and luxury handbags worry AUSTRAC

The financial crimes watchdog’s chief executive Brendan Thomas says luxury goods along with cash and real estate have received its highest risk rating.

  • Ronald Mizen
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus.

No backward step cutting off money flow to criminals: Dreyfus

The strong words from the attorney-general will come hours after the international body tasked with co-ordinating global AML/CTF efforts slams Australia’s performance.

  • Ronald Mizen

May

The bank in 2020 admitted that it had failed to properly report 19.5 million international fund transfer instructions to the regulator on transactions totalling more than $11 billion.

Westpac sues insurers over $1.3b AUSTRAC penalty

AFR Weekend understands that the bank believes it is eligible to claim $400 million from its insurers over the AUSTRAC fine.

  • Lucas Baird
Hard Rock operates dozens of venues around the world.

Brisbane developer emerges at centre of Star’s Hard Rock mystery

The Florida-based entertainment giant said it had not authorised its name for use, despite Star telling investors it had received a proposal.

  • Updated
  • Zoe Samios, Anthony Macdonald and Liam Walsh
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AUSTRAC identified potential serious compliance concerns at SkyCity Adelaide.

SkyCity agrees to $67m penalty as licence decision looms

The case was based on allegations the company allowed high-risk patrons to gamble more than $4 billion in dirty cash through its casino.

  • Zoe Samios

April

Crown’s Sydney tower seen from Balmain. The $2.2 billion development was stymied by the loss of its gaming licence.

Crown Resorts finally gets the green light to run Sydney casino

The Blackstone-owned gaming giant had been subject to a string of restrictions after a NSW inquiry called into doubt its ability to properly run a casino.

  • Zoe Samios
Star Entertainment is before a second NSW inquiry.

We still don’t know if Star has hit the bottom

Star’s chief risk officer says the casino operator is closer to the start of its turnaround plan than the end. That’s a worry for investors.

  • James Thomson
Opposition Home Affairs spokesman James Paterson has told AUSTRAC to investigate TikTok.

TikTok referred to anti-money laundering authorities

The app’s gifting function, usually used to reward engaging streamers, had directed cash to terror-linked accounts.

  • Nick Bonyhady
Lobby group ClubsNSW says its members had recently met with the financial crime watchdog to ensure they were complying with anti-money laundering laws.

NSW clubs ‘acutely aware’ of money laundering laws

Lobby group ClubsNSW said its members had recently met with the financial crime watchdog to ensure they were complying with anti-money laundering laws.

  • Ronald Mizen

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/australian-transaction-reports-and-analysis-centre-1n7r