The chairman of Casino Canberra has resigned immediately amid conflict of interest concerns.
In a statement to the ASX, Hong Kong billionaire Tony Fung said it was appropriate for an independent board to take charge of Aquis Entertainment, which owns the Civic venue, after six years at the helm.
Mr Fung said in the statement that his retirement came at a time when his industry faced the "competing interests" of pursuing profits while dealing with issues such as problem gambling, money laundering and what was required to justify a "social licence" to operate a casino.
He said it was "not hard to see" how his family's role as majority shareholder and financial lender could create a conflict of interest with those "non-profit" factors.
The statement indicated that Mr Fung would remain a majority shareholder.
The Canberra Times sought a further explanation from the casino's chief executive, Allison Gallaugher, about Mr Fung's resignation, including whether his comments about the broader industry challenges were in reference to explosive recent revelations about Crown Resorts.
Royal commissions in Victoria and Western Australia have been launched into whether Crown is fit to hold a licence in their states, after a NSW inquiry found it was "not suitable" to run its Barangaroo casino in Sydney because of its involvement in money laundering and other "deep" problems.
The Canberra Times also asked Ms Gallaugher if Mr Fung's retirement was in any way connected to the collapse of the long-planned sale of the casino to Blue Whale Entertainment in January last year.
Ms Gallaugher said all of the information about the reasons and timing of Mr Fung's resignation were included in an announcement to the stock exchange.
"There's nothing else involved," she said.
Russell Shields, Aquis' non-executive director, will step in as interim chairman and is expected to be elevated into the position full-time in the coming weeks.
Mr Fung said he was "very comfortable and confident" in leaving the company in the "competent hands" of the board.
Mr Fung has served as Aquis' chairman since it acquired the casino in 2015.
It has been a tumultuous period for the casino, headlined by its unsuccessful pitch to the ACT government for a $330 million expansion of its Glebe Park precinct.
A fortnight after Aquis' unsolicited bid was knocked back by the Barr government, Michael Gu's Blue Whale unveiled plans to take control of the casino in a complex transaction with Mr Fung's company.
Blue Whale had spruiked their own plans to upgrade the venue once the sale was approved. But the deal ultimately collapsed after Blue Whale missed a deadline to obtain approvals from the ACT Gaming and Racing Commission.
The casino was forced to shut its doors between March and August last year amid the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The casino initially suffered a major hit in revenue, but bounced back strongly in the second half of 2020 to record a calendar year profit of almost $800,000. That compared to an almost $4 million loss in 2019.
It posted another $366,000 for the six months to June 30 this year.
