Star boss blames previous management for casino giant’s woes

Star Entertainment chief executive Bruce Mathieson jnr has blamed previous management for the struggling casino giant’s compliance problems, promising he will deliver a clean slate and cultural overhaul for the “long-suffering business”.

Mathieson jnr wrote to staff on Tuesday, claiming a joint investigation by The Sydney Morning Herald , The Age and The Australian Financial Review used “selective reporting” that lacked context.

“The simple fact is that so little that had transpired in the past – including the immediate past before we took over less than nine months ago – was at a standard our regulators, governments, customers and communities should expect,” Mathieson jnr wrote in the email seen by this masthead.

“We are working to change that. This will involve trying new things, recognising when they do not work, and making changes as required.”

On Saturday, the investigation detailed serious concerns about Star’s compliance and problem gambling systems. Eight insiders, speaking on the condition of anonymity, alleged there had been an erosion of governance under Mathieson jnr’s leadership, while internal documents revealed Star repeatedly ignored warnings to fix a safety flaw on the rooftop deck of its Brisbane casino precinct before a young worker used it to scale a barrier and fall to her death.

Mathieson jnr is the son of billionaire publican Bruce Mathieson snr and a former director at Endeavour , which owns the Dan Murphy’s bottle shop business and a string of pubs with poker machines. The younger Mathieson took over as chief executive of Star following the completion of a $300 million rescue package with American casino giant Bally’s. The deal lifted his family’s stake in the business to 23 per cent, while Bally’s owns 37.7 per cent.

Mathieson jnr wrote that he brought a “clean slate” to Star as well as a willingness to “listen and learn”.

“There is no reason why cities as significant as Sydney, Brisbane and Gold Coast cannot have internationally recognised integrated resorts that add to the rich vibrancy of those cities,” he said.

“Across the three properties the work that has been done to review the effectiveness and efficiency of the Star’s financial crime and safer gambling processes and practices … is ongoing and evolving. It’s disappointing to see such selective reporting of our confidential corporate information, without context.”

When 60 Minutes, The Age and the Herald first exposed allegations of Star’s governance failings in 2021, the then-executives at the casino firm sought to downplay the reporting, only for regulators to confirm the reports and strip the casino of its licence in late 2022. Since then, Star has struggled to make money from its casinos.

Major inquiries in 2022 and 2024 ultimately led to repeated cleanouts of management, as well as new state casino regulations that limit cash spending and require detailed checks on customers. Star is also facing a multimillion-dollar fine from AUSTRAC, the financial crimes watchdog, for historical misconduct. In Sydney, Star’s licence is suspended. It has been overseen for almost four years by independent administrator Nick Weeks.