Exit from joint venture secures Star Entertainment’s refinancing and frees company from debt guarantees
Sydney-listed casino operator Star Entertainment Group has completed its exit from the Destination Brisbane Consortium.
Star Entertainment announced a binding agreement in August 2025 to exit the Destination Brisbane Consortium and Destination Gold Coast Consortium (DGCC) joint ventures in a two-stage process, with the first stage of the process now complete.
On Wednesday, Star Entertainment completed its exit from DBC, leaving it in the hands of joint venture partners Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE) and Far East Consortium International (FEC).
DBC is the owner of the Queen’s Wharf Brisbane Integrated Resort project in Australia.
Following yesterday’s completion, Star Entertainment will no longer receive an operator fee under the DBC casino management agreement. Instead, the company will receive a fixed monthly fee of A$1.5 million to operate the Star Brisbane, alongside a performance-based incentive fee.
The casino management agreement has also been revised to allow the owners of DBC to terminate the agreement with 90 days-notice in certain circumstances based on performance.
Completion of the DBC transaction was one of the closing conditions to this week’s refinancing deal with WhiteHawk Capital, and also releases the company from the guarantee it has provided in relation to its 50 per cent share of the DBC debt facility.
Star Entertainment expects to satisfy all of the conditions required to complete the second stage of its JV exist, the DGCC transaction, in the second half of 2026 and by no later than the end of the first quarter of 2027.
In related news, Star Entertainment has appointment Brooke Lindsay as a non-executive director, subject to regulatory and ministerial approvals.
Until the approvals are received, Lindsay will act as an observer on the company’s board of directors.
Star Entertainment chairman Soohyung Kim said: “I would like to welcome Brooke to the Board and look forward to working with her to assist in delivering our strategic objectives and creating a sustainable future for The Star.”
Lindsay previously served as group chief legal and compliance officer at Emirati telecommunications company e& (formerly Etisalat), and has more than two decades of international experience advising boards and executive leadership across the technology, telecommunications and investment sectors.
Shares in Star Entertainment Group Ltd. (ASX:SGR) closed 8 per cent lower at A$0.12 per share in Sydney Thursday.