Bally’s Corp, Mathieson Rescue Star Entertainment from Oblivion

Posted on: April 10, 2025, 06:57h. 

Last updated on: April 10, 2025, 09:31h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.
  • Star Entertainment was saved from financial collapse by Bally’s cash injection
  • Bruce Mathieson, Star’s top shareholder, to contribute an AU$100M to AU$300 rescue package
  • Leadership overhaul expected

Star Entertainment was expected to receive an AU$100 million (US$61.8 million) cash injection from Bally’s Corp on Wednesday — the day it was predicted to run out of money completely – as the US casino stepped in to save the stricken Australian operator.

Star Entertainment, Bally’s Corp, Bruce Mathieson, Soo Kim
Pub and slots billionaire Bruce Mathieson, above, has committed AU$100 million to the Star rescue package, reducing Bally’s commitment to AU$200 million. (Image: The Australian)

On Monday, Star accepted an AU$300 million bailout offer from Bally’s that would see the US-based operator take majority control of the company. Bally’s commitment was reduced to AU$200 million after Star’s largest shareholder, the pub and slots mogul Bruce Mathieson, committed AU$100 million to the rescue package.

The change in the deal structure was announced via an April 8 ASX filing. As a 10% shareholder in Star Entertainment, Mathieson would have lost around AU$150 million had Star collapsed, according to The Australian Financial Review (AFR).

The deal puts an end to the most turbulent period in Star’s history, as it faced penalties from regulators for anti-money laundering (AML) failures amid a dearth of international VIP customers. The group has been on the brink of collapse for months.

‘Definition of Insanity’

While Bally’s intervention may have saved thousands of jobs, it’s unlikely to save those of the current executive management.

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again and again and expecting a different result,” Bally’s chairman Soo Kim told the AFR Tuesday. “We need to put different executives in there – this particular mix of executives have generated poor operating performance.

The ‘new Star’, which is what I’d call it for now, will be brighter than the Star in the past,” Kim added.

Kim said Star’s assets had been “severely undermanaged” but, with time, would start making money again. Some analysts have said there is significant buyer risk in the deal and that greater capital may need to be invested in the future.

Several Unknowns

It’s unclear whether the deal to buy Star will include its 50% stake in the Queen’s Wharf precinct in Brisbane, which it agreed to sell to its partners in the venture, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium, for $50 million as it struggled to stay afloat.

Bally’s CEO Robeson Reeves previously told Sky News that his company was interested in the whole package and wanted to “keep everything together rather than strip it apart.”

It’s also unclear whether the change of ownership will impact ongoing disciplinary actions against Star by regulators in New South Wales and Queensland.

The company’s licenses remain suspended in both those jurisdictions because of past anti-money laundering transgressions. Star is also expected to receive a significant fine from the financial crimes watchdog.