Curaçao Investigates Former MGA Chief’s Firm Over €4.1M Payments

Curaçao’s finance ministry has opened an investigation into Random Consulting, the firm run by former Malta Gaming Authority chief executive Mario Galea, over claims it received multimillion‑euro payments from the island’s gambling regulator.

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Finance minister Charles Cooper said Galea’s consultancy has been paid 8.3 million Caribbean guilders annually, equal to about €4.1 million, while advising on the territory’s gaming regulations.

The probe comes against a backdrop of political disruption. Javier Silvania, the minister who set up Curaçao’s new regulatory system, resigned last October in an unrelated corruption scandal.

Since then, the ministries of finance and justice have been locked in a dispute over which should oversee the gambling portfolio.

Cooper described the reported payments as unusually high, noting, “The world of gaming shows that this figure – paying a person/company 8.3 million XCG per year – is very high for a company charged to provide such a service, but we should let the investigation run its course and then take next steps based on its result.”

He also argued the sum represented more than 35% of the government’s online gambling revenue, questioning what services justified such a fee.

Support for the inquiry has also come from parliament. Suzanne Camelia‑Römer, former prime minister of the Netherlands Antilles and now a member of Curaçao’s legislature, issued a statement backing the investigation.

RCL responds

Mario Galea’s Random Consulting Limited has pushed back against the allegations, releasing a statement to clarify its work with the Curaçao Gaming Authority.

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The company said recent remarks from finance minister Charles Cooper had created confusion about its role, and while confidentiality rules prevent it from disclosing full contract details, it wanted to put “certain factual information on the public record.”

RCL explained that it has provided technical support to the regulator and its predecessor, including building and maintaining the licensing portal.

A separate team, it added, has been dedicated to keeping operations running. The firm noted that once the contract ends, the licensing software will be handed over to the CGA, giving the regulator full control of its systems.

On payments, RCL reported receiving €3.4 million since 2022, with most of that money coming in 2024 and 2025

The company disputed Cooper’s claim that its fees represented 35 percent of gambling revenue, saying the CGA should be collecting more than €29 million annually in licence fees. It asked that the minister either back up his figures or issue a correction, and also called for an inquiry into how confidential commercial details were leaked.

The statement added: “RCL has provided the CGA with regulatory platforms, hosting, maintenance, operational support, application processing, licence monitoring, domain surveillance and additional functionality. It has also assumed responsibilities outside the original scope and deferred payments at the government’s request. RCL will not accept inaccurate public statements that misrepresent the nature, value or cost of its work.”

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Source: NEXT.io