Corporate

A judge has approved a $35 million penalty against HSBC in ASIC’s novel case over the bank's scam protection failures, despite questioning whether the punishment was severe enough given how long the case took to settle.

HSBC has agreed to pay a $35 million penalty in ASIC proceedings after it admitted to serious failures in protecting customers from scams, but a judge is questioning whether the penalty is high enough. 

A judge has ordered the former CEO and chief legal officer of Star to pay a combined $1.1 million in penalties for failing to act on "obvious" money laundering risks, but said the fines would have been higher had ASIC not struck a "generous" settlement with other directors.

Former directors of failed clothing retailer Mosaic Brands are claiming privilege over retainer letters between Deloitte and the company as special purpose liquidators investigate potential insolvent trading and directors duty breach claims.

An executive director at ASIC has said the High Court has “opened the door” for regulators to rely on a new way to prove corporate wrongdoing that does not require establishing that individuals within a company had a wrongful intent or relevant knowledge. 

A judge has questioned whether Macquarie Financial should get 70 per cent of an interim $102 million distribution to people who sank their retirement savings into Keystone’s Shield Master Fund, which is being investigated for misuse of investor funds.

Cement Australia has lost its bid to have a construction issue relating to a deed of release in a fight with a defunct subsidiary over a $1.2 million asbestos claim determined ahead of trial.

The founders of AI data centre start-up Firmus Grid have been subpoenaed to give evidence in a dispute between former business partners Simon Raftery and Ben Madsen over $100 million in company shares, ahead of an expected $7 billion IPO.

Venture capital firm EVP has won court approval to pursue claims against bankrupt Strongroom AI founder and former director Christopher Durre.

Woodside Energy has exercised its pre-remption rights to block Inpex's acquitision of PetroChina's interest in the Browse Basin gas joint venture off Western Australia's coast.