Australia

CASINO EMPLOYEE SACKED FOR BORROWING CASH FOR GAMBLING

Published

4 years ago

December 20, 2021

Reading Time: 2 minutes

A gaming manager at The Star was sacked and banned from the casino for borrowing cash from her employees to fund her gambling habit.

The Casino Special Employee, Minh Nguyen, used her position as an assistant gaming manager to borrow thousands from her staff, some of which was not paid back.

Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority Chairman Phillip Crawford said it was a matter of integrity when an employee abuses a position where reputation and character is essential.

European Gaming Congress 2024 (Warsaw, Poland)

“The Authority revoked Ms Nguyen’s licence to prevent her and others from further gambling-related harms,” Mr Crawford said.

“The repeated nature of the contraventions indicates a lack of honesty and considerable lack of diligence or ability with respect to regulatory compliance.”

In 2020 and 2021 Ms Nguyen borrowed more than $7000 from staff under her management.

In one scenario she cut an employee’s shift short and offered to give him a lift home. During the ride home Ms Nguyen began speaking about her family issues and asked to borrow $1000. She stopped her car at an ATM so the employee could extract the cash. After several months and multiple attempts to get the money back, Ms Nguyen finally agreed to meet at a petrol station to repay the loan.

In another example, Ms Nguyen requested $3000 from an employee and said it would be returned in two months. The employee loaned her $2000 but only $1000 was repaid five months later. Repeated attempts to contact Ms Nguyen were met with unanswered calls and disconnected phone numbers.

Employees were reported as saying they did not want to say no to their manager and were also scared to talk about it with her or others.

Ms Nguyen stated she did not feel she used her power as a manager to influence staff members to loan her money.

Casino special employees are licensed to undertake certain positions within a casino, involving supervision of gaming tables, equipment, security, and the ability to hold management positions.

The licence requires a high level of integrity, honest conduct, and adherence to the Casino Control Act.

“This decision will help protect the industry, the community and Ms Ngyuen herself, by mitigating the risks of any future incident because of her personal gambling addiction, Mr Crawford said.”

Australia

ACMA Blocks More llegal Online Gambling Websites

Published

4 days ago

June 19, 2025

Niji Narayan

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Reading Time: < 1 minute

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has requested the Australian internet service providers (ISPs) to block more illegal online gambling sites, after investigations found these services to be operating in breach of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001.

The latest sites blocked include Casiny, CoinPoker, Crown Play, Fafabet9, SlotFred, Smart 93 and Vigor Spin.

Website blocking is one of a range of enforcement options to protect Australians against illegal online gambling. Since the ACMA made its first blocking request in November 2019, 1251 illegal gambling and affiliate websites have been blocked. Around 220 illegal services have also pulled out of the Australian market since the ACMA started enforcing new illegal online gambling rules in 2017.

The post ACMA Blocks More llegal Online Gambling Websites appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Australia

ACMA: TAB Penalised $4 Million for Spamming VIP Customers

Published

5 days ago

June 18, 2025

Niji Narayan

acma:-tab-penalised-$4-million-for-spamming-vip-customers

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Tabcorp Holdings Limited (TAB) has been penalised $4,003,270 for sending more than 5700 marketing messages to customers of its VIP Programme that broke Australia’s spam laws.

An Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) investigation found that TAB sent 2598 SMS and WhatsApp messages to VIP customers between 1 February and 1 May 2024 without providing an option to unsubscribe from the messages.

The ACMA also found that 3148 SMS and WhatsApp messages did not contain adequate sender information across the same period, and 11 SMS messages were sent without consent between 15 February and 29 April 2024.

Authority Member Samantha Yorke said the breaches were deeply concerning as they involved non-compliance by a large and established gambling provider that targeted VIP Programme customers.

“This is the first time the ACMA has investigated and found spam breaches in a gambling VIP program. These programs often involve personalised messages offering incentives such as bonus bets, deposit matching, rebates and offers of tickets to sporting and other events.

“The gambling industry needs to understand that spam laws apply to all direct marketing—whether it’s generic campaigns or personalised messages,” Ms Yorke said.

“VIPs should not be confused with gambling ‘high-rollers’. These types of gambling VIP programs can involve customers who are not well off and are experiencing significant losses,” Ms Yorke said.

“It is utterly unacceptable that TAB did not have adequate spam compliance systems in place.”

Under the Spam Act 2003, businesses must have consent before sending marketing messages. Messages sent with consent must also contain a working unsubscribe option and information about the sender.

“When people make choices to unsubscribe from a service they must be able to do so easily and their decisions must be respected by companies,” Ms Yorke said.

TAB has also entered into a 3-year court-enforceable undertaking. This includes an independent review of its direct marketing systems, making improvements, running quarterly audits of its VIP direct marketing, training staff and reporting to the ACMA regularly.

“The ACMA will be watching closely to ensure TAB meets its commitments and complies with the spam laws in future,” Ms Yorke said.

Cracking down on gambling safeguards and spam rules are current compliance priorities for the ACMA. Over the last 18 months businesses have been penalised over $16.9 million for spam breaches.

The post ACMA: TAB Penalised $4 Million for Spamming VIP Customers appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Australia

IBIA Joins the Judging Panel for Inaugural RTG Global Awards

Published

2 weeks ago

June 12, 2025

Niji Narayan

ibia-joins-the-judging-panel-for-inaugural-rtg-global-awards

Reading Time: 2 minutes

The organisers of Regulating the Game have announced the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) as a confirmed judge for the inaugural RTG Global Awards, to be presented at the Regulating the Game 2026 Gala Dinner on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Sydney.

The RTG Global Awards celebrate excellence in leadership, innovation and impact across community impact, compliance, safer gambling, industry integrity and financial crime risk management. The Awards form part of the sixth edition of Regulating the Game, an international conference committed to enhancing sector integrity, regulatory capability and ethical leadership.

Founded in 2005, IBIA is the leading global voice on integrity for the licensed betting industry. It is a not-for-profit association whose members include many of the world’s largest regulated betting operators, active across six continents. IBIA plays a crucial role in safeguarding sport and the betting industry from corruption, operating a world-leading monitoring and alert platform and collaborating with regulators and sports governing bodies around the world.

Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA, joins the RTG Global Awards judging panel, bringing deep sector expertise and a steadfast commitment to integrity and responsible betting practices.

He said: “I am honoured to join the judging panel for the RTG Global Awards. At IBIA, we are dedicated to upholding integrity and transparency across the global betting landscape. These Awards spotlight the organisations and individuals working to advance ethical conduct and effective regulation, and we are proud to support that mission.”

Paul Newson, Principal at Vanguard Overwatch and founder of Regulating the Game, welcomed the announcement: “Khalid’s appointment and IBIA’s involvement reflect the global calibre and integrity-centred mission of the Awards. Their leadership in monitoring and protecting sport from betting-related corruption aligns perfectly with our vision to champion excellence and elevate standards across the sector.”

• The RTG Global Awards will feature six categories:

• Leadership Voice – for principled, reform-focused leadership contributing to sector uplift

• Safer Gambling Champion – for operators or organisations demonstrating tangible harm minimisation outcomes

• Compliance Excellence – recognising uplift in AML, risk culture, or regulatory compliance

• RegTech Solution of the Year – celebrating innovative technologies improving sector integrity and compliance

• Community Impact Initiative – for initiatives delivering measurable community benefit

• Emerging Leader – Safer Gambling or Compliance – spotlighting rising talent (under 40) making meaningful contributions.

Key Dates:

• Nominations Open: Tuesday, July 1, 2025

• Nominations Close: Friday, December 12, 2025

• Finalists Announced: Monday, February, 2 2026

• Awards Presented: Tuesday, March 10, 2026 at the Regulating the Game Gala Dinner.