Star made the aggressive move to divest of its Brisbane operations in March by selling its 50% stake in the multibillion-dollar Queen’s Wharf development back to partners Chow Tai Fook and Far East Consortium. By doing so, Star helped ease its financial hardships by relinquishing substantial commitments related to the project. The company also consolidated full ownership of Star Gold Coast, viewing that as a better long-term investment. Rising regulatory expenses and a consumer downturn mean Star is now operating at a financial loss. According to Higgins, there were enough red flags at board level to indicate that directors needed to investigate further. This included requests to approve an increase in cheque cashing facilities for a junket operator from $50 million to $80 million with no supporting information, and at short notice. The corporate watchdog has accused 10 former Star Entertainment board members and executives of being blind to the red flags that pointed to money laundering and illicit activities at its casino. Payment of the sale proceeds were made to participating shareholders on 27 May 2016 in accordance with their payment instructions as recorded on the share register. Even for those who identify as LGBTQI+, we can still be allies for others within the community. Alarming laws and legislation have been passed in other countries that can significantly impact people’s lives. As a business, The Star is ahead of many in our industry in terms of diversity and inclusion, but there’s still a lot to do.
