Australia’s financial intelligence agency has secured a $260 million penalty from Star Entertainment for systemic failures in preventing money laundering at its casinos, marking a significant legal victory after years of litigation. The penalty, handed down by the Federal Court in late October 2026, comes following AUSTRAC’s 2022 action against the casino operator and is among the largest ever imposed in the sector.

AUSTRAC chief executive Brendan Thomas said he did not accept Star Entertainment’s previous claims that a fine exceeding $100 million would bankrupt the company. “We never bought the argument that Star ran that the fine was going to send them broke,” Thomas said, emphasizing that Star has remained solvent despite operational and reputational challenges since the legal proceedings began. The agency initially sought a $400 million penalty, but acknowledged the court took into account Star’s prior fines totaling approximately $200 million in penalties from the Queensland and New South Wales governments.

AUSTRAC’s case centered on Star’s conduct between November 2016 and October 2020, during which the operator allegedly allowed 117 high-risk clients suspected of criminal activities to launder billions of dollars through its Sydney, Brisbane, and Gold Coast casinos. According to the regulator, high rollers linked to junket operators wagered more than $125 billion in that period. Thomas described Star’s behavior as “egregious,” arguing that the company knowingly profited from criminal activity and provided incentives for individuals identified as organized criminals by NSW Police to gamble in Queensland venues.

Star admitted to much of the conduct underpinning the case but maintained in court hearings in June 2025 that a punitive fine of over $100 million would threaten the company’s financial viability. In response to the latest ruling, Star Entertainment chairman Soo Kim acknowledged that circumstances had shifted since last year and that the penalty would not push the company into insolvency. Kim also serves as chairman of Bally’s Corporation, Star’s largest investor, which alongside the Mathieson family, had previously injected $300 million in emergency funding to stabilize the business amid tightening regulatory scrutiny and economic pressures.

Thomas highlighted that the combined enforcement actions against Star and Crown Resorts—the latter agreeing to pay a $450 million fine for its own money laundering breaches—have contributed to efforts to stem the flow of illicit funds funneling into Australia's gambling sector. “There was a big element of the money that was coming through the large Australian casinos. That’s not coming in in the same way, which is a good thing,” he said.

Nonetheless, Thomas warned that criminals continue to seek vulnerabilities in financial controls and that law enforcement must remain vigilant. The crackdown aims to limit the avenues available for laundering illicit proceeds, making it increasingly costly and difficult for criminals to exploit Australia’s casinos.

Since the AUSTRAC legal action began four years ago, Star Entertainment has experienced significant reputational damage and operational challenges, including oversight by a special monitor at its Sydney and Gold Coast properties. Thomas characterized Star’s downfall as “a tale of a corporate disaster,” underscoring the consequences of systemic compliance failures within the gambling industry.