A mystery Macau businessman has emerged as a major Star Entertainment shareholder after spending $35 million to take a big stake in the operator of casinos in Sydney, Brisbane and on the Gold Coast.

The disclosure of a 5.5 per cent stake acquired by Xingchun Wang since September came as the company attempts to negotiate with lenders in a bid to prevent its collapse. Last week, Star warned it had just $79 million left in its bank account, having spent $108 million over just three months.