The Deal Desk: Australian business sale and M&A news for business owners, published every weekday. Thursday 22 October 2026.
Anyone selling a business in Australia can learn from this week’s news. A childcare operator has gone into administration, a logistics group has turned its Brisbane depot into $44 million of cash, and a Japanese insurer wants to buy Challenger outright.
Today’s top business sale and M&A stories
Seven childcare centres in administration as Finexia’s Shared Beginnings collapses (QLD / VIC / ACT)
Shared Beginnings, owned by suspended lender Finexia Financial Group, has put its seven early learning centres in Queensland, Victoria and the ACT into administration. All seven remain open while administrators look for buyers. Finexia told staff the centres were running at a loss (ABC News, 21 October 2026). Finexia’s loans to Genius-linked companies totalled $21.2 million, secured against 11 childcare businesses valued at $29.1 million (Business News Australia, 20 October 2026).
Why it matters: distressed centres are priced on occupancy and losses, not past valuations. Owners who sell while trading is strong keep control of the price.
Team Global Express sells its Brisbane depot for $44 million and leases it back (QLD)
Team Global Express has sold its 7.27-hectare distribution site at Tennyson in Brisbane to Blackfox Property for $44 million on a 6.8% net passing yield. It has signed a 10-year leaseback starting at $3 million a year. The site failed to sell in 2022 when it was offered with a starting rent of $1.35 million (Real Estate Source, 20 October 2026).
Why it matters: if your business owns its premises, a sale and leaseback can release cash before you sell. Set a market rent, because buyers will price it in.
Japan’s Dai-ichi Life offers $7.9 billion for annuities group Challenger (National)
TAL Daiichi Life Australia, which already owns 20.5% of Challenger, has made a non-binding indicative offer of $11.80 a share for the rest of the company. That is a 17.7% premium to the one-month volume-weighted average price and values the shares it doesn’t own at about $7.9 billion. The board is considering it (Business News Australia, 19 October 2026).
Why it matters: a part-owner is often the most motivated buyer. If a partner holds a minority stake in your business, agree now how a full buyout would be priced.
Novotech notifies the ACCC of its purchase of Adelaide’s Agilex Biolabs (SA)
Novotech notified the ACCC on 20 October of its purchase of Agilex Biolabs (ACCC acquisitions register, 20 October 2026). The Adelaide laboratory, which tests samples for clinical trial sponsors, is being sold by a Healius subsidiary for an undisclosed price (Pulse 2.0, 25 September 2026).
Why it matters: specialist South Australian businesses draw national and overseas buyers, and the ACCC process is now a normal part of the deal timetable.
Dalby medical centre sells for $10.8 million on a 7.3% yield (QLD)
The Ochre Medical Centre at Dalby, about 210km west of Brisbane, has sold for $10.8 million on a 7.3% yield and net rent of $787,362. It has six healthcare tenants, CPI plus 1% annual reviews and five years left on the anchor lease (Real Estate Source, 19 October 2026).
Why it matters: long leases with fixed reviews make a property more valuable. Practice owners should line up the lease and the business sale.
Update: trust tax Senate inquiry submissions close on 29 October (National)
The Family Business Association has asked the Senate committee to publish Treasury’s modelling of the $4.5 billion minimum tax on discretionary trusts. Submissions close on 29 October and hearings run on 5 and 6 November. It notes that state stamp duty relief for restructures is still unclear (Family Business Association via Medianet, 20 October 2026).
Why it matters: if your business sits in a family trust, talk to your accountant now about the structure you will sell from.
What today’s news means for business owners
- Sell from strength. Childcare owners in Brisbane, Melbourne and Canberra are watching distressed centres change hands. A business sold while trading well keeps its price.
- Treat your property as a separate asset. From Brisbane’s south side to the Darling Downs, investors are paying 6.8% to 7.3% yields for long leases.
- Plan for the regulators and the tax office. Adelaide deals are going through the ACCC, and family business owners in Victoria, NSW and South Australia should check their trust structure before 29 October.
Frequently asked questions
Should I sell my business premises separately from the business?
It can lift your total price, because investors pay for secure rent. Team Global Express sold its Brisbane depot for $44 million on a 6.8% yield and leased it back for 10 years, and a Dalby medical centre sold for $10.8 million on a 7.3% yield. Have the business and the property valued separately before you decide.
What happens to a childcare centre when the operator goes into administration?
The administrators usually keep the centres trading while they look for buyers, then sell them as going concerns, closing any that no buyer wants. Shared Beginnings’ seven centres in Queensland, Victoria and the ACT stayed open after administrators were appointed in October 2026. Sale prices in this situation tend to reflect occupancy and losses rather than past book values.
Thinking about selling or valuing your business?
I’m Shweta Sharma, a business broker, M&A adviser and Registered Business Valuer with Accelerate Business Sales, working with owners in South Australia, Victoria and across Australia. Book a business valuation, find out how we sell businesses or read more business sales and M&A news.
General information only, not financial, legal or tax advice. Figures are as reported by the sources linked.
