Silk smooths Crown Resorts’ reputation

The newly-reconstituted Crown Melbourne casino operating company in Australia has gone super-respectable.

The company, not so long ago dubbed unsuitable to hold a casino licence but now under new ownership, has recruited Ian Silk (pictured), the doyen of Aussie pension fund executives, to its board.

The move is hoped to erase any remaining doubts among regulators in Victoria state, following the damning outcome of the inquiry into alleged money-laundering practices at Crown.

Silk was previously at superannuation fund AustralianSuper. Now at Crown, newly acquired by equity company Blackstone, Silk, raised some eyebrows with his appointment.

He was once a director at an Aussie sports club and campaigned vigorously against gaming coming into his venue. But at AustralianSuper, the fund held over A$1bn in Aristocrat shares.

Other new directors appointed at Crown include Helen Silver, a former Victorian government senior employee, and Henriette Rothschild, a businesswoman and director of a football club.