The New South Wales Independent Casino Commission (NICC) has extended the licence suspension of The Star Entertainment Group’s Sydney casino once again.
The NICC received a pathway-to-suitability submission from The Star Sydney on 12 March, in which the operator reaffirmed its January correspondence that it would not be seeking a licence determination this month.
A suspension has been in place on The Star Sydney for over three years, as the operator was determined to be no longer suitable for a casino licence after NICC-commissioned reviews by Adam Bell SC in October 2022 and August 2024 found several regulatory failures.
When determining the initial suspension, the NICC took into account the possibility of the casino being able to satisfy the commission with appropriate remedial actions and thus didn’t cancel the property’s licence outright. Nicolas Weeks was appointed as manager of The Star Sydney to allow gaming operations to continue at the establishment.
The current extension means the casino licence suspension will remain in place, with Weeks’ appointment extended until 30 September 2026 unless terminated at an earlier date.
The Star noted in a regulatory update to its investors that the suspension extension aligns with ‘the current term of the appointments of the Special Manager to The Star Gold Coast and the External Advisor for The Star Brisbane’.
NICC Chief Commissioner Philip Crawford has praised The Star’s new leadership team, stating: “The new owners are making significant changes to the operation of the business which are being monitored closely by the NICC.
“This includes work to make the business more financially sustainable in the long term which will assist them in demonstrating suitability. We will continue to work with The Star on their remediation priorities so that the casino can remedy the serious concerns raised in the two Bell inquiries.”
WhiteHawk swoops in
Earlier this week, The Star took the next step in refinancing its debt with WhiteHawk Capital Partners after delivering its commitment letter on time, moving towards refinancing its existing debt “in full and incremental liquidity to retain sufficient liquidity for the ordinary course of operations”.
Refinancing must be completed by 15 May 2026 for The Star to avoid default, but the operator has had a provisional agreement with WhiteHawk in place since February and has been reviewing its resourcing structure and strategy.
The agreement follows The Star announcing its H1 FY26 results at the beginning of the month, expressing optimism following a rollercoaster end to 2025 that culminated in normalised net revenue of A$585m (H1 FY25: $650m), as well as a significant net loss of over A$75m.
It was also the first reporting period under new management, following the A$300m strategic investment from Bally’s Corporation and Investment Holdings being completed late last year.
