Latest news with #ChowTaiFookEnterprises
Reuters
2 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Australia casino operator Star revives 50% asset sale to HK investors
Aug 12 (Reuters) - Troubled Australian casino company Star Entertainment ( opens new tab said on Tuesday it had revived a sidelined deal with its Hong Kong-based partners to sell a half stake of its A$3.6 billion ($2.35 billion) Brisbane resort, sending its shares soaring. Star is selling its interest for A$53 million, of which A$45 million was paid in March. The company had cautioned that it risks collapse owing to a perfect storm of heightened regulation, lack of tourists and elevated living costs. The cash helps Star service substantial debt that it racked up converting its Brisbane property to much fanfare. Talks broke down on August 1 after investors Far East Consortium ( opens new tab and Chow Tai Fook Enterprises — both seeking to exit the joint venture — refused Star's request to extend negotiations. On Tuesday, Star said the investors had now agreed to a sale on terms broadly similar to the original proposal. It did not say why the Asian companies agreed to resurrect the talks. Far East Consortium and Chow Tai Fook were not immediately available for comment. Far East's Hong Kong-listed shares were paused. Shares of Star were up 32% by midsession, against a flat overall market (.AXJO), opens new tab, bouncing from a near-record low after the company announced the reprieve. After the talks fell apart, Star began returning the A$45 million which the investors had already paid. The money Star paid back would now be returned, the casino operator said. Star will also take two-thirds of two Gold Coast hotels under construction from the Hong Kong shareholders, and will retain its rights to any future development at the Gold Coast operations, it said. The company is expected to report annual financial results on August 28. ($1 = 1.5349 Australian dollars)
Sydney Morning Herald
2 days ago
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
Star seals deal to sell Queen's Wharf casino to HK partners
Struggling casino operator Star Entertainment has rescued a deal to offload its troubled Brisbane resort to the Hong Kong-based business partners in this venture. The publicly listed company has been locked in negotiations over plans to sell its 50 per cent stake in Brisbane's Queen's Wharf casino to Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium, as it scrambles to reduce debt and survive a financial crunch. Star had been unable reach an agreement with the parties before a key deadline two weeks ago, but on Tuesday it said it had entered into a $53 million binding deal. The deal will see Star sell its share of Brisbane's Queen's Wharf casino to Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium and hand Star ownership of properties at the Gold Coast casino. Star is also selling a Brisbane hotel and car park at its Treasury complex, and a 50 per cent stake in a car park in Charlotte Street, Brisbane. Loading The transaction means Star will not be required to fund any equity contributions to the Queens Wharf project. If it had not entered the deal, it expected these contributions would have been at least $212 million. Star will also be released from its guarantee over a 50 per cent share of the project's debt facility. The gaming giant said it had received consent from the US casino group Bally's that took a major stake in Star earlier this year.
The Age
2 days ago
- Business
- The Age
Star seals deal to sell Queen's Wharf casino to HK partners
Struggling casino operator Star Entertainment has rescued a deal to offload its troubled Brisbane resort to the Hong Kong-based business partners in this venture. The publicly listed company has been locked in negotiations over plans to sell its 50 per cent stake in Brisbane's Queen's Wharf casino to Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium, as it scrambles to reduce debt and survive a financial crunch. Star had been unable reach an agreement with the parties before a key deadline two weeks ago, but on Tuesday it said it had entered into a $53 million binding deal. The deal will see Star sell its share of Brisbane's Queen's Wharf casino to Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium and hand Star ownership of properties at the Gold Coast casino. Star is also selling a Brisbane hotel and car park at its Treasury complex, and a 50 per cent stake in a car park in Charlotte Street, Brisbane. Loading The transaction means Star will not be required to fund any equity contributions to the Queens Wharf project. If it had not entered the deal, it expected these contributions would have been at least $212 million. Star will also be released from its guarantee over a 50 per cent share of the project's debt facility. The gaming giant said it had received consent from the US casino group Bally's that took a major stake in Star earlier this year.
Reuters
01-08-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Star Entertainment's Brisbane casino deal collapses; shares hit record low
Aug 1 (Reuters) - Star Entertainment's planned 50% stake sale in its A$3.6 billion ($2.32 billion) Brisbane resort failed after its Hong Kong-based investors looking to exit the joint venture refused to extend talks, it said on Friday, sending its shares to a record low. The collapse of the Queen's Wharf deal marks a major setback for the Australian casino operator, which is on the brink of bankruptcy following a string of regulatory probes over the past two years that drove patrons away and left it with a mounting debt pile. Star will now have to repay the investors, Far East Consortium and Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, A$41 million, which includes proceeds and equity contributions invested in the project, by September 5 after they failed to reach consensus on the stake sale. "The parties have been unable to reach agreement on a number of outstanding commercial issues," the casino operator said in a statement, opens new tab, adding that the partners refused a last-ditch effort to extend the negotiations by a week. That leaves Star responsible for future equity contributions to the project of about A$200 million, and may need to inject additional equity when the project's debt facility of A$1.4 billion comes up for refinancing in December. Shares in the embattled Australian casino operator tanked more than 17% to their record low of 9.1 Australian cents per share earlier in the day. They were last trading at 9.4 cents apiece, as of 0417 GMT. "The A$1.4 billion debt refinancing of the DBC (Destination Brisbane Consortium, name of the JV) due in December looms as a make-or-break moment for The Star, if it can survive that long," said John Lockton, head of investment strategy at MST Financial. "The Star's cash flow continues to wither, and the back and forth over commitments only muddies the picture further." ($1 = 1.5547 Australian dollars)
Sydney Morning Herald
01-08-2025
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
Star back on the brink as Brisbane casino deal collapses
Embattled casino operator Star Entertainment has confirmed the deal to offload its troubled Queen's Wharf casino in Brisbane to its Asian partners has collapsed, leaving it exposed to a loss-making asset and further investment in the operation. Star confirmed on Friday morning that the deadline to renegotiate the sale of its 50 per cent stake in Queen's Wharf to Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium has passed with no progress from the parties. 'As of this morning, the parties have been unable to reach an agreement on a number of outstanding commercial issues which in turn prevent the finalisation of long form documents,' Star said in a statement to the ASX. Star will be forced to repay more than $36 million to its consortium partners between now and September, but the bigger issue is how it will shoulder its share of future equity contributions and the consortium's debt. Star's cash levels have been bolstered to $234 million by recent asset sales, and an equity injection from US group Bally's and interests associated with major shareholder Bruce Mathieson. Star is also awaiting the outcome of a court decision on fines for breaches of anti-money-laundering regulations that is expected to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Star's lawyers told the Federal Court last month that fine of more than $100 million may trigger the group's financial collapse. When Star announced the Brisbane deal in March, it helped the casino operator avoid financial collapse, with the consortium partners offering to pay $53 million for Star's 50 per cent share and hand over other real estate assets in Queensland. Earlier this week, Star released its quarterly report, which precedes audited financial accounts due next month, states that it made a loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation costs of $27 million for the quarter ending June 30, on revenue of $270 million. The casino operator said mandatory carded play at its flagship Sydney casino requiring all patrons to have a physical card – either The Star Club membership or a Player Card – plus $5000 cash limits have continued to drag on its gambling performance, with average daily revenue down 17 per cent since it was introduced in August last year.
