Entain’s Australia business has filed a formal defence in response to the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac) launching civil penalty proceedings against Entain over anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF) failings.
Austrac notified Entain in December 2024 that it would be taking action over what it viewed as “serious and systematic” non-compliance. It was the first time Austrac had brought civil penalty proceedings against an online betting business.
Entain commenced mediation with the regulator during the summer, with this still ongoing. Earlier in October, Entain CEO Stella David said this process would take “as long as it takes”, noting progress to date at Entain. The operator also appointed a new permanent CEO for its Australia business in August.
“I think we’re probably market leading [with the system we have in place now],” David said. She noted there was no timeline for proceedings and that the legal process could be worked out in court.
iGB has reached out to Entain for access to its full defence document.
What has Entain said in its defence?
Ina statement, published on Monday, the operator acknowledged there had been “certain deficiencies” in its previous AML/CTF compliance programme between December 2018 and August 2024. However, it disputed some of the allegations and interpretations made by Austrac in its case.
Entain also referenced certain actions it has taken in recent years to address some of the noted concerns. These included a ten-fold increase in AML/CTF staffing and significant investment in new systems and technology.
Other steps included closing higher-risk channels, such as all-cash payment channels, and shutting all customer accounts flagged by Austrac in its investigations of the operator. In addition, Entain has put in place governance, controls, processes and oversight of risks, as well as a new leadership team to oversee these efforts.
Entain added that it has fully cooperated throughout the case and that it continues to engage constructively and in good faith.
What accusations does Entain face?
In its initial filing over the matter, Austrac made several accusations against Entain. These were based on an investigation that started in September 2022.
Stand-out claims included Entain’s board and senior management not having appropriate oversight of its processes. Austrac said this limited its ability to spot risks, thus making the operator vulnerable to criminal exploitation.
Entain was also said to have allowed third parties to accept cash and other deposits on behalf of the business to be credited to betting accounts. This, Austrac said, meant people could fund gambling using the proceeds of crime.
Meanwhile, Entain also failed to carry out appropriate checks on 17 higher-risk customers. This meant a higher risk of sites being exploited by those looking to spend the proceeds of crime. As noted by Entain, it has now closed the accounts of all flagged individuals.
Entain ‘missed the mark’ with existing systems
Commenting on the case, Entain Australia & New Zealand CEO Andrew Vouris said that, while the operator fell short of expectations in the past, it has acknowledged these shortcomings and taken action to right its wrongs.
“We sincerely regret that our old programme didn’t meet expectations,” Vouris said. “We followed expert advice at the time but, looking back, we recognise the old programme missed the mark.
“We’ve acknowledged our shortcomings, taken responsibility and spent the last two years learning from them and fixing them.
“Entain has fundamentally transformed its approach to compliance. We now operate a market-leading programme, underpinned by a compliance-first culture – to win, but not at all costs.”
Criminal player activity
Further light was shed on the case when certain associated court documents were made public in March. These included accusations of Entain failing to report criminal account holders across a number of its Australian brands.
The court documents flagged a series of suspicious activities. Numerous multi-million-dollar deposits and withdrawals were detailed in the filing, between 2019 and 2022.
In one instance, an account had a lifetime turnover of over $57.3 million within the space of a couple of years. Another player account, on the Ned brand, had up to $1.8 million worth of deposits between November 2017 and April 2019 – with $1.2 million withdrawn in the same period.
The case remains ongoing but could result in a hefty financial penalty for Entain. Previous fines dished out to land-based casinos in Australia have totalled tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars.
“We sincerely regret that our old programme didn’t meet expectations,” Entain Australia CEO Andrew Vouris said, acknowledging some of the failings included in Austrac’s case against the company.