Childcare chain collapse highlights private credit risks

In short:

Shared Beginnings, owned by private lender Finexia, is in administration.

Shares in Finexia have been suspended for months after the ASX-listed lender failed to file financial reports on time.

A former national children's commissioner says a lot of private providers are divesting childcare centres or pulling out of the sector altogether.

Childcare chain Shared Beginnings has hit financial strife, becoming the latest early education provider to run into trouble amid a wave of closures in the sector.

The childcare service, owned by private lender Finexia Financial Group, operates centres in Queensland, Victoria and the ACT.

Shared Beginnings entered administration on Monday.

Finexia wrote to staff, informing them the centres had been operating "at a loss".

The collapse highlights the risks of the private credit sector, with Finexia taking on ownership of the centres in the 2025 financial year after the previous owner, Genius Education, defaulted on substantial loans owed to Finexia.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has recently said it was closely scrutinising private lending, which has typically been a much more lightly regulated sector than the banking industry, and was concerned "the first significant cracks" were appearing.

Centres still operating

The impact on childcare places and jobs at Shared Beginnings remains unclear as the administrators continue to operate the centres.

The firm said the decision came after exhausting all other options.

Finexia managing director Neil Sheather said placing Shared Beginnings into administration was not taken lightly, but was necessary.

"Finexia has committed to honour staff entitlements and continues to financially support the business as it continues to provide services to families,"he said.

"Ultimately, the administrators are in control of Shared Beginnings."

In a letter to staff, Mr Sheather said the administration would affect all seven of its centres, including Sinnamon Park and Kenmore in Queensland, Reservoir, Mont Albert and Beaumaris in Victoria, and Bonython and Conder in the ACT.

In a separate letter to parents, Mr Sheather assured families that all centres remained open, and care would continue as normal.

Bill Karageozis and Nick Keramos of DVT McLeods have been appointed administrators to find suitable buyers.

The federal minister for education has been contacted for comment.

For-profit providers drive 'churn'

A September report by the Early Learning and Care Council Australia has found the rate of early childhood education and care (ECEC) service closures has continued to increase.

The report said 152 long daycare services had closed since 2024, with a further 276 services (both long day care and preschool/kindergarten) identified as at risk of closing in the next 12 months.

Former national children's commissioner Anne Hollonds AO said the childcare sector was undergoing a significant adjustment, driven by increased regulatory costs and a number of prominent crises.

"I think what we're seeing is a lot of private providers divesting centres or pulling out altogether,"she said.

For-profit centres dominate the long daycare sector. Most of the growth in recent years has been in private for-profit providers, with a recent report from the Mitchell Institute finding they made up 74 per cent of long daycare places.

Ms Hollonds said the sector would be better if it were shared 50-50 between non-profit and for-profit organisations.

"We really need to focus on the safety and well-being of children as the priority," she said, adding that she had no problem with for-profit providers as long as their operation was up to scratch.

The Mitchell Institute also found substantial instability or "churn" in the long daycare sector was driven by for-profit centres.

"Since 2013, about one-third [32 per cent] of long day care services open in 2025 had changed approved provider," the report said.

"The rate is higher in for-profit centres where 40 per cent have changed provider, compared to 11 per cent of all other centres."

Have you been impacted by the closure of childcare centres or private lending? We would like to hear from you! Contact our journalist confidentially on li.yiying@abc.net.au or li.yiying@proton.me.

Finexia shares suspended

The seven Shared Beginnings centres arose from the ashes of Genius Early Learning, which operated more than 30 early childhood centres across the country and collapsed under massive debt in March 2025.

Finexia said it had since "provided significant financial and operational support, including rebranding, marketing, staffing support and substantial funding to cover working capital shortfalls".

The stock exchange suspended Finexia's securities on March 2 after it failed to file multiple periodic reports, including its half-yearly report which was due at the end of February.

The company had reported a $5.2 million net loss for the 2025 financial year, which it described as "one of the most challenging in Finexia's history".

The collapse of Genius, which had been a major borrower from Finexia, was described as a "troubling event for management and investors alike" and led to Finexia taking on ownership.

Earlier this week, the company told the market it had completed the divestment of its interest in the Stay Company Income Fund, offloading $25 million in debt from its balance sheet.

The fund was established to capitalise on the "demand for tourism and residential accommodations in Australia".

In early October, Finexia's former executive chairman, Robert Spano, resigned and transitioned to non-executive director and chairman of the board.