3
Online gaming operator Mr Green is to pay £3m to the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms after the Gambling Commission found it failed to have effective procedures aimed at preventing harm and money laundering.
As a result of these failures Mr Green:
- Did not carry out social responsibility interaction with a customer who won £50,000, gambled it away and deposited thousands more pounds
- Took ten-year-old evidence of a £176,000 claims payout as satisfactory evidence of source of funds for a customer who deposited over £1m
- Accepted a photograph of a laptop screen showing currency in dollars on an alleged crypto trading account as adequate SOF.
Richard Watson, Gambling Commission executive director, said: “Our investigation uncovered systemic failings in respect of both Mr Green’s social responsibility and AML controls which affected a significant number of customers across its online casinos.
“Consumers in Britain have the right to know that there are checks and balances in place which will help keep them safe and ensure gambling is crime-free – and we will continue to crack down on operators who fail in this area.”
4.3
Aristocrat has suspended all staff travel throughout the Asian region following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, however the company does not expect any significant disruption to daily operations as a result.
Commenting at the company’s 2020 annual general meeting recently, Trevor Croker, CEO and managing director of Aristocrat, lauded a record profit posted during the firm’s 2019 fiscal year.
Publishing its financial report in November 2019, strong operational momentum across both its land-based and digital businesses gained attention, with the latter delivering over 40 per cent of total group revenue during the year.
Croker said of the travel postponement: “Aristocrat has no direct operations in mainland China, and relatively small exposure to the Asian region generally. However, we have been closely monitoring developments with a focus on our people, customers and supply chain.
“We have temporarily suspended travel in the region, and are supporting our staff in Macau and Hong Kong. We are also proactively monitoring and managing potential supply chain impacts. At this stage we do not foresee any material adverse impacts on our business, but we will keep the market updated as appropriate.”
In its latest financial report figures showed that Aristocrat’s operating revenue on a normalised basis shot up 22.7 per cent to AU$4.3bn (£2.3bn) from AU$3.5bn (£1.8bn), with full-year profit after tax finishing up at AU$752.8m (£397.6m), a 22 per cent rise from AU$616.9m (£325.8m).
6
Galaxy Entertainment Group has shared “personal concern as a result of the outbreak of the coronavirus,” as well as providing numerous updates on expansion plans.
As full-year group net revenue and EBITDA finishes with 2019 decreases of six per cent and two per cent, respectively, to HK $51.9bn (US $6.6bn) and HK 16.5bn (US $2.1bn), GEG chairman Lui Che Woo begins the firm’s latest financial statement with a letter updating on impacts of the pandemic.
With the firm’s foundation donating US $2.5m to China’s Hubei Province to help fight the outbreak and assist in relief efforts, the firm details a re-acceleration of construction efforts following the lifting of a Macau Government imposed casino suspension last week.
“As you are aware in late December 2019, the coronavirus was confirmed and many people have been impacted at different levels. I wish to express my heartfelt sympathy to all those affected and to their family and friends,” Lui Che Woo explained.
304
Caesars Entertainment is eyeing a US sports wagering drive as the group sees a significant swing in fourth quarter and full-year net income in its latest financial report.
During 2019’s final quarter a net loss of $304m was reported, as opposed to income of $198m a year earlier, with 2018 full-year income of $303m seeing a $1.5bn shift to a loss of $1.19bn.
In a media release the firm aligns the change to “an increase in other loss of $1.38bn primarily due to a year over year change in the fair value of the derivative liability related to the CEC convertible notes”.
Revenue during Q4 increased 2.6 per cent to $2.16bn (2018: $2.11bn), primarily driven by significant growth in Las Vegas due to healthy consumer demand, new sportsbook entries, particularly in Iowa and Indiana, and better results in Atlantic City.
For the full-year revenue reached $8.74bn, a 4.2 per cent rise from $8.39bn, due to the acquisition of Centaur in July 2018, strong Las Vegas results and favorable hold, which helped offset lower gaming volume at Atlantic City properties as a result of increased competition and inclement weather.
Income from operations during the quarter increased 77 per cent to $177m, driven by increasing net revenue, with a 16.4 per cent decrease to $618m (2018: $739m) felt across the full year due to an increase in operating expenses of $472m offset by an increase in net revenue of $351m year-on-year.
