Star Entertainment settles superyacht dispute amid severe cash flow crisis

Posted: January 10, 2025, 03:03 pm.

Last updated: January 10, 2025, 03:03 pm.

Embattled Australian casino operator Star Entertainment has resolved a dispute over a luxury super yacht by selling it to a wealthy businessman who sued the company last year for allegedly delaying the deal.

Facing a severe liquidity crisis that threatens its very existence, Star has begun rapid asset sales in an attempt to recoup millions of dollars in losses.

These assets included a 145-foot Benetti superyacht, star, Which was previously used to influence high rollers.

According to court documents, Star agreed to sell the boat to Platinum Capital Partners, the private investment vehicle of Cypriot financier Royce Poyiadjis, for A$8.6 million (US$5.3 million).

Sold too cheap?

The star purchased the yacht for an undisclosed amount in 2019 and spent A$4 million refurbishing it. Similarly refurbished Benetti superyachts can sell for more than A$20 million (US$12.3 million). Australian Financial Review (AFR) Report.

The buyer had arranged to take the yacht from Newcastle Harbor in New South Wales to Majorca, Spain, where Platinum planned to rent the yacht to wealthy tourists.

Poiyadzis' lawsuit sought US$6 million in damages from the casino operator. The complaint and counterclaim by Star were withdrawn on Tuesday, a day after the agent reported the yacht had been sold.

see stars

Shares of Star Entertainment hit an all-time low on Thursday after the company told investors it had only 79 million Australian dollars (US$49 million) left in its bank and had lost 107 million Australian dollars (US$107 million) in the past three months. 66 million US dollars) has been spent.

The operator said it was working to meet the conditions necessary to draw down the second tranche of a A$200 million (US$123 million) loan facility executed in September. But Starr acknowledged that “many of these conditions remain challenging to meet given the current circumstances of the group.”

The license has been suspended from 2022 after an investigation concluded that the operator had allowed itself to be used by criminal gangs to launder money in private VIP rooms. It fraudulently allowed Chinese high rollers to withdraw a total of $900 million for gambling using China UnionPay (CUP) credit cards, while disguising these transactions as “hotel expenses”.

Some lenders are reporting that Star could go into voluntary administration “within months” and that its “hotels will be gutted and sold to the highest bidders,” according to AFR.