Shared Beginnings, a childcare operator with seven centres across Queensland, Victoria and the ACT, went into administration on Monday. Its owner, private lender Finexia Financial Group, told staff the centres had been running at a loss.
All seven centres are still open and care is continuing as normal while administrators from DVT McLeods look for buyers. Finexia says it will honour staff entitlements and keep supporting the business in the meantime.
The centres came to Finexia after the earlier owner, Genius Education, defaulted on large loans in 2025. Finexia’s shares have been suspended since 2 March after it failed to file several reports on time, and it booked a $5.2 million net loss for the 2025 financial year.
The collapse lands as ASIC has said it is closely watching private lending, which is far more lightly regulated than banking. An industry report found 152 long daycare services have closed since 2024, with 276 more at risk over the next year.
The Mitchell Institute has found for-profit providers hold 74 per cent of long daycare places and drive most of the churn, with 40 per cent of for-profit centres changing provider since 2013.
What it means for your money
If your child attends a centre run by a struggling provider, ask about its ownership and keep an eye on fees you have paid in advance. Investors in private credit funds should check how exposed they are to a single sector.
Source: ABC Business