Inside Asian Gaming

IAG JAN 2023年1月 亞博匯 88 COLUMNISTS hand, the potential benefits that could reasonably be expected to have accrued to the company from that conduct.” In the context of the Star Entertainment Group, engaging with junket operator Suncity certainly boosted gaming revenue at The Star, as did the facilitated use of China Union Pay cards to provide funds for gambling, but both carried a risk of harm in the form of adverse regulatory intervention by the gaming regulators in both New South Wales and Queensland. An empirical study by the academics Ramsay and Saunders published in 2019 found that in the period 1993- 2017 ASIC achieved an 83% success rate in actions brought for breach of the statutory duty contained in section 180 (1). A total of 46 such actions were litigated between 1998 and 2017. Penalties have included disqualification from serving as a director, and hefty fines. It is a moot point whether directors and officers who are fined can rely on any indemnity they may have received from the company, or upon Directors and Officers insurance to cover their monetary penalty and defense costs. There are actions which directors can take to mitigate the prospect of being successfully sued for breach of their statutory duty to exercise care and diligence. The first is to ensure that risks are properly dimensioned and prioritized, and that they are constantly reviewed in conjunction with management accountable for the activity within which the risk arises. Directors cannot simply “set and forget”. Secondly, all internal processes giving rise to material risks (materiality may be measured quantitatively, or qualitatively, such as regulatory, legal or reputational risk) should be process-mapped. This enables vulnerabilities to be isolated (for example, where access, personnel or documentary controls might be required to provide a robust internal control environment), and decision points, requiring the exercise of judgement, noted.