New Zealand regulator suspends pokies trust licence after sector-wide accounting review

New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs has suspended the licence of charitable gaming trust One Foundation for six days after a review of the country’s Class 4 pokies sector found widespread accounting failures.

The department said the suspension followed accounting failures relating to gambling proceeds and a failure by One Foundation to surrender a licence for one of its pokies venues when required by law. One Foundation holds Class 4 licences, the category covering non-casino gaming machines operated by licensed societies, and distributes grant funding from the proceeds of the machines it operates.

The review covered the sector as a whole and found cases where money that should have been available for community grants was instead used to cover society expenses, including purchasing gaming machines. Alongside the enforcement action, the department said it had secured commitments that will return NZ$11.5 million to community organisations through gambling grants. The money has not yet been paid out.

New Zealand’s Class 4 sector generates more than NZ$1 billion in gambling proceeds each year, which the Gambling Act intends for community benefit.

Vicki Scott, the department’s Director of Gambling, said the investigation had produced significant results. “We’ve secured commitments that will return NZ$11.5 million to community organizations, taken enforcement action where it was needed and provided operators with clearer guidance about their obligations.”

She added that most operators had worked constructively with the department to address historical issues and improve their practices. The department also released new financial guidance for the Class 4 sector covering accounting requirements and operators’ obligations, which it said would improve consistency and help prevent similar issues.

Work with other operators is continuing, and the department said further funding may still be recovered.

The department’s announcement was first reported by a gambling trade publication.

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