An Australian court has banned former Star Entertainment CEO Matthias Bekier from holding management positions for six years and imposed an AU$700,000 fine for failing to adequately address money-laundering risks at the operator.
In March, the Federal Court found that Bekier and former Chief Legal and Risk Officer Paula Martin breached their duties by failing to properly respond to identified anti-money-laundering and criminal-risk concerns.
At the time, the court noted that Bekier did not adequately address a KPMG report which highlighted deficiencies in Star’s anti-money laundering and criminal risk controls.
Much of the case focused on Star’s largest junket operator, Suncity, with turnover linked to the group reaching AU$2.1bn, AU$4bn and AU$5.9bn in the 2017, 2018 and 2019 financial years, respectively.
In its latest ruling, the Federal Court Justice Michael Lee said both Bekier and Martin had failed to demonstrate sufficient understanding of the seriousness of their breaches.
He said: “It is one thing to regret the consequences of having been investigated and sued; it is another to demonstrate an appreciation of why the conduct found by the court involved serious failures in the discharge of duties owed by senior officers of a casino operator.”
Martin was also disqualified from holding similar roles for seven years and fined AU$400,000. The court said the penalties are intended to deter similar governance failures at large regulated operators.
Bekier stepped down as Star’s CEO in 2022 amid the investigation into the breaches, while Martin also resigned the same year.
Global Gaming Insider has contacted Star for comment, but the operator has not yet responded.
The Star Entertainment Group reported a statutory net loss of $109.7m for the half-fiscal year ended 31 December 2025
