Australia’s Star Entertainment secures $390 million WhiteHawk refinancing

March 30 (Reuters) – Australia’s Star Entertainment said on Monday it had secured a binding commitment for $390 million in refinancing from funds associated with WhiteHawk Capital Partners, giving the casino operator liquidity to stabilise its balance sheet.

The announcement follows Star’s disclosure in late February that it had reached an in-principle refinancing agreement with WhiteHawk.

Announcing its results for the first-half of fiscal 2026 on February 27, the company also said that it had secured a waiver for its financial covenants due on December 31, 2025.

Under the waiver, Star was required to deliver a refinancing commitment letter by March 31, and execute the refinancing by May 15 to avoid a default.

The three-year facility will fully refinance its existing group debt and deliver incremental liquidity to support ordinary course operations, Star said.

The deal remains subject to customary conditions, including regulatory approvals and final documentation.

Star has been battling high debt levels and prolonged regulatory pressure after multiple inquiries found widespread serious compliance failures at its casinos, triggering fines, operating restrictions and tighter oversight.

The fallout has weighed on earnings and cash flow, forcing the company to seek repeated covenant waivers from lenders, pursue asset sales and line up refinancing to remain within its loan terms.

The company added it was working to complete the refinancing by no later than May 15, in line with the conditions of the waiver granted by its senior lenders on February 27.

The deal requires the cash-strapped firm to maintain minimum liquidity of A$50 million ($34.3 million) in the first year, rising to A$100 million over time.

Shares of the company were down 4% as of 2320 GMT, broadly in-line with a 1% decline in the benchmark ASX200 index.

($1 = A$1.4594)

(Reporting by Rajasik Mukherjee; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Sumana Nandy)