In September 1990 Beneficial Finance decided to withdraw funding and the Chapmans approached Partnership Pacific, a subsidiary of Westpac, to take over the financing. Partnership Pacific agreed but only with the condition that the State Government paid the entire cost of the bridge. A secret meeting was arranged between the Chapmans, Westpac and the government at which it was accepted that the government would pay the whole cost of the bridge while the Chapmans would pay back half at a later date, but only after Binalong had paid off all its debts to Westpac. Binalong owed so much money to the State Bank through Beneficial Finance that Bannon apparently had no choice but to prop the company up. The State Bank collapsed not long after with debts of $3 Billion.