Australia’s Love Affair with Unregulated Gambling Billionaires

“Legends” or Lawbreakers? Australia's Love Affair with Unregulated Gambling Billionaires

Australia is a curious place when it comes to online gambling. The very activity that is banned for its citizens is simultaneously celebrated when exported abroad by home-grown tech entrepreneurs. It’s a paradox that deserves more scrutiny, especially when it involves billionaires like Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani, the masterminds behind Stake and Easygo.

The recent LinkedIn post by Alun Bowden, SVP at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, sparked an important conversation. His comment on the rise of Shuffle and the peculiar way Australian media glorifies those behind black-market gambling echoed concerns many of us (especially myself), have long raised.

“A country where they explicitly banned online casino cheerleading some lads running black market sites with some fat long tail AML risks and minimal RG is quite dissonant.”

– Alun Bowden

Bowden’s post did not name Stake or its founders directly. But the parallels are clear. Like Shuffle, Stake grew from Melbourne, operates online casinos internationally and sits in regulatory limbo in most jurisdictions. Stake’s billion-dollar empire, built on crypto gambling, mirrors the same business model Australia prohibits, except when it's “not in our backyard.”

 The media narrative: when billionaires escape scrutiny

In February 2025, Forbes Australia published its inaugural “Young Rich List,” ranking Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani among the nation’s wealthiest self-made entrepreneurs. Their company Stake, which operates primarily from Melbourne, reportedly generates billions in revenue. Yet no serious domestic scrutiny followed.

Forbes described Stake’s rise with admiration, not concern. No mention of the fact that Stake is barred from operating in Australia under the Interactive Gambling Act. No mention of the regulatory grey zone in Curaçao, where the company’s licence originates. No questions about AML risks, player fund security or tax avoidance structures.

This celebration was mirrored across major outlets. Tech startups from other sectors are rarely afforded such leniency, especially when their core activity is deemed illegal at home.

Cyprus-based payments and weak licensing

Despite being a crypto-first operator, Stake has for years relied on conventional financial infrastructure via third-party payment processors located in Cyprus.

These intermediaries, often operating under limited oversight, act as agents to collect player deposits, process fiat-to-crypto exchanges and sometimes obscure the final recipient of funds. This system adds another layer of complexity for AML enforcement and tax accountability, particularly when the true source and destination of funds are concealed behind foreign corporate structures.

At the same time, the Curacao Gaming Authority (recently rebranded but still struggling with credibility) continues to license operators like Stake with minimal oversight. Despite promises of reform, real-time monitoring, enforcement of Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols or transaction reporting remains limited to nonexistent.

Stake’s model, like that of many Curaçao-based operators, continues to function in regulatory shadows, enabled by this vacuum of effective supervision.

 Shuffle vs Stake: Same story, different name?

Alun Bowden’s critique of Shuffle could just as easily apply to Stake. Like Stake, Shuffle operates from Australia. Like Stake, its business relies on a crypto-powered online casino product accessible in unregulated or lightly regulated markets. And like Stake, Shuffle is benefiting from a wave of local media praise – with little interest in whether any of this aligns with national gambling laws or international best practices.

Tom Galanis, Trishul Patel, Adar Ziv and others weighed in on Alun’s post, raising interesting perspectives. Some argued that these companies are hiring locally and paying taxes “to some extent.” Others defended the entrepreneurs’ success, comparing it favourably to the old-guard gambling elite from overseas.

But this misses the point.

When will AUSTRAC act?

In multiple posts, including direct comments to AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas, we have asked a simple question: When will AUSTRAC investigate the Melbourne-based operations of Stake and Easygo?

These are companies allegedly processing hundreds of billions through crypto rails. In its previous enforcement campaigns, AUSTRAC has gone after banks, pubs and payments platforms with far smaller risk exposure. The question now is not whether these businesses are known to AUSTRAC. It is whether Australia’s regulators are willing to act when those involved are young, rich and powerful – and when they are feted in the business press rather than operating from a dodgy address in Darwin.

As of today, our questions remain unanswered.

The tax black hole and global impact

Operating from Australia, with servers and personnel in Melbourne, Stake reaches players in dozens of jurisdictions. Many of these countries (from Canada to Germany and many other countries around the globe) prohibit or severely restrict access to online casino platforms like Stake unless they are licensed locally.

By routing its gambling operations through Curaçao, Stake avoids paying gaming taxes in those jurisdictions. This raises not only moral questions but legal ones. Are profits from these operations being properly taxed in Australia? Are local AML laws being followed? Are the founders personally exposed to liability should foreign regulators decide to clamp down?

The global cost of this regulatory arbitrage is not abstract. It means lost tax revenues. It means inadequate protections for players. It means vulnerable consumers gambling with no recourse when things go wrong.

Our take: the need for transparency and enforcement

This is not a personal attack on Ed Craven or Bijan Tehrani. Nor is it a condemnation of the many talented people working at Stake or Easygo. But it is time to stop pretending this is normal.

• Governments, regulators and media outlets must decide: Is online casino gambling an illegal, high-risk activity?
• Or is it a legitimate export industry that should be encouraged, provided taxes are paid and laws followed?

 !!!It cannot be both!!!

 And if it’s the latter, then why are companies like Stake not properly licensed in Australia, why are their operations not audited in line with AML standards and why is there no response when questions are put to the relevant authorities?

Until we get answers, this remains one of the largest unregulated exports Australia has ever seen.

FAQs

What is Stake and who are its founders?
Stake is a crypto-based online casino platform founded by Australians Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani, operating globally but not licensed in Australia.

Why is Stake controversial in Australia?
Stake operates in a legal grey zone. It's banned domestically under the Interactive Gambling Act but praised as a business success in Australian media.

Is online casino gambling legal in Australia?
No, online casino gambling is prohibited for Australians under the Interactive Gambling Act, though offshore operations like Stake exploit loopholes.

What role does Curaçao play in Stake’s business model?
Curaçao provides light-touch licensing for Stake, allowing it to operate internationally without strong regulatory oversight or transparency.

Why is Australia’s media coverage of Stake problematic?
Mainstream outlets celebrate Stake’s success but ignore regulatory issues, AML risks, and the fact that its services are illegal within Australia.

How does Stake process payments despite crypto focus?
Stake uses third-party payment processors based in Cyprus to handle fiat-to-crypto transactions, often bypassing direct scrutiny and regulations.

Has AUSTRAC investigated Stake or Easygo?
Despite public concerns, AUSTRAC has yet to publicly confirm any active investigation into these companies’ compliance with AML laws.

What are the AML concerns with Stake’s operations?
Stake processes large sums through crypto channels, raising red flags about anti-money laundering compliance and fund traceability.

Are Stake’s operations taxed in Australia?
It remains unclear whether Stake’s international revenues are fully taxed in Australia, especially given its offshore licensing and crypto channels.

What is the broader impact of Stake’s business model?
Stake’s structure results in lost tax revenues globally, weak player protections, and regulatory arbitrage that undermines gambling laws worldwide.