Australian casino operator Crown Resorts Limited has announced Ciarán Carruthers is to step down as its Chief Executive Officer from the first day of next month following a two-year stint in charge.

The Melbourne-headquartered firm is responsible for the gambling-friendly Crown Perth, Crown Melbourne, and Crown Sydney venues and revealed Carruthers’ role will be filled by its recently-appointed President and Chief Operating Officer, David Tsai, until a more permanent successor can be found.

Turbulent Times

With over three decades of international casino industry experience, Carruthers took over from Steve McCann as the Chief Executive Officer for Crown Resorts Limited in July of 2022, some four months after local regulators determined the company had not been properly following appropriate anti-money laundering rules.

Crown Resorts Limited was initially denied a New South Wales casino license for its new $1.5 billion Crown Sydney development in 2021 after an official state-backed investigation uncovered allegations of money laundering linked to the firm’s past use of Asian junkets. This was followed by probes from the governments of Western Australia and Victoria in which the company was forced to implement a range of enhanced anti-corruption and scrutiny measures so as to be able to keep operating.

Successful Stint

The Australian Financial Review reports Carruthers, a former Chief Operating Officer for the 1,000-room Wynn Macau facility, helped steer Crown Resorts Limited back to full compliance in Victoria and Western Australia all while juggling rising costs and a significant slowdown in customer footfall. At the same time, the Ireland-born figure was forced to cut more than 1,000 jobs in response to reduced visitation from Asia before axing 275 roles late last year following the closure of one of Crown Sydney’s two VIP gaming floors.

Carruthers was also at the helm when Crown Resorts Limited debuted its PlaySafe problem gambling support program and simultaneously helped the operator to ink lucrative commercial partnerships with several enterprises, including the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the Australian leg of The Era’s Tour from American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift.

The experienced executive was moreover in authority in April when the New South Wales Independent Casino Commission took Crown Resorts Limited out of special measures and granted it a full casino license for the 75-story Crown Sydney venue.

“I am very pleased to hand over a stronger, compliant, and transformed business to its next leader,” Carruthers said. “There is more work to do but I am very proud of what we have achieved as a team.”

Earlier Exoneration

Carruthers’ decision to step down additionally comes approximately five months after he was cleared over allegations he had personally intervened so as to allow excluded punters to gamble. Two law firms engaged by Crown Resorts Limited independently concluded the executive had not circumvented the authority of security staff and was therefore blameless for a pair of incidents in which barred customers managed to gain access to the casino within the company’s flagship Crown Melbourne property.

Faltering Financials

Crown Resorts Limited was purchased by American alternative investment management firm Blackstone Incorporated for approximately $6 billion in June of 2022, with the operator going on to rack up an annual loss of some $640 million. Despite this disappointing result, the company’s newly-appointed Chair, John Borghetti, stated Carruthers had led the casino firm through a difficult period of transformation and remediation.

“Under Ciarán’s leadership, Crown Resorts Limited has achieved critical milestones including a whole-of-business transformation and remediation program,” Borghetti said.

Although Carruthers offered no official reason for his departure, the Australian Financial Review reports the writing could well have been on the wall from last month after Blackstone Incorporated reduced the number of people directly reporting to the Adelaide resident from 15 to six. His departure is to moreover coincide with the coming exit of former Wynn Macau colleague Justin Casey as Crown Resorts Limited’s Group Casino Officer.