“Crown Brisbane” trademark renewed amid talk Star won’t operate Queen’s Wharf casino
Casino operator Crown has made a revealing trademark move amid speculation it could take on management of Star Entertainment’s Queen’s Wharf in Brisbane.
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Crown Resorts has renewed a decade-old trademark of the words “Crown Brisbane” amid speculation it could take on management of Star Entertainment’s Queen’s Wharf casino.
Star is currently in turgid negotiations with its Hong Kong investment partners, who had agreed to buy Star’s 50 per cent share of the $4bn Brisbane precinct as the ASX-listed group drowns under more than $1bn in debt.
Chow Tai Fook and Far East Consortium, which currently each hold 25 per cent of Queen’s Wharf, agreed in March to take over Star’s 50 per cent share, but negotiations faltered last month.
Media reports and online forums have suggested, if the deal does go through, the partners would look to dump Star as casino operator, given its unresolved suitability issues with regulators.
IP Australia records show Crown Melbourne made an application in March to renew a trademark for the words “Crown Brisbane” it had held since 2015.
Crown also holds a trademark for the words “Crown Gold Coast”, which is due for renewal in 2026.
Both casino operators have been contacted for comment.
Star has less than a fortnight left to find common ground with its partners and avert the collapse of the ownership deal.
Without it, Star would be liable to repay almost $37m to the partners and would stay on the hook for the full amount of $1.4bn debt related to the mega-development.
Continuing uncertainty over the Queen’s Wharf deal comes after Star shareholders last month approved a $300m buyout deal from US-based Bally’s Corp and pubs billionaire Bruce Mathieson, a deal that saved the group from almost appointing administrators.
Meanwhile, the financial crimes watchdog is seeking a $400m penalty for Star’s money laundering failures which compelled Bally’s to say it may walk from the rescue deal.
Star says anything higher than $100m could send it broke.
Crown, which is owned by American private equity firm Blackstone, was slugged with a $450m fine in 2023 over anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism breaches at its Melbourne and Perth operations.
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