The former CEO of a unit of collapsed construction firm Hastie Group told staff to “raid the balance books” to make up financial targets linked to his bonus, prosecutors said at the outset of a two-month criminal trial.
The liquidators of Gold Coast fund manager Equititrust are seeking court approval of a confidential settlement of two proceedings brought against KPMG for allegedly failing to properly audit the firm prior to its collapse.
The High Court will not review an appeals court’s decision to approve a $64 million settlement in litigation over the failure of Banksia Securities while rejecting the funder’s commission and legal fees.
A Queensland Supreme Court judge has given the green light for a $30 million settlement of a liquidator’s case against failed financial services firm LM Investment Management, saying the result was appropriate and “a matter of some public interest”.
The former directors of collapsed mining company Termite Resources have appealed a ruling ordering them to pay $7 million in damages for allegedly breaching their duty by distributing more than $46 million to Termite’s parent company and failing to maintain a cash reserve of at least $10 million.
US hedge fund Oaktree Capital has placed fund manager Blue Sky Alternative Investments into receivership, following a tumultuous period marked by the loss of senior executives and three shareholder class action investigations amid concerns about the company’s method for valuing its assets under management.
The Federal Court has approved a scheme of arrangement which will see investors take a 70 per cent stake in troubled fund manager Angas Securities, receiving a possible $52.2 million in shares and other assets.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission wants ASX-listed diamond mining company Merlin Diamonds wound up, expressing concerns about the company’s solvency and over $13 million in loans made to companies associated with Merlin’s director, Joseph Gutnick, without shareholder approval.
A court has dismissed a long-running case against defunct Babcock & Brown executives by a private investment fund over a botched $1.4B acquisition of the biggest laundry equipment provider in the US, saying the executives did not breach their duties by failing to disclose that the bank underwriting the deal allegedly wanted out.
A court has thrown out a $75 million compensation claim filed by an investor in a Ponzi scheme alleging liquidator Grant Thornton Australia and its lawyers Colin Biggers & Paisley failed to return his funds expeditiously.