Toplace creditors lodged proof of debt claims worth $630m
Jean Nassif’s apartment empire collapse is expected to be among the largest-ever property administrations with documents showing creditors lodged claims worth more than $630m.
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The scale of the collapse of Jean Nassif‘s Toplace apartment empire has been laid out as creditors lodged proof of debts to vote at the first meeting of creditors in mid-July which amounted to more than $630m.
The figure was revealed in meeting minutes lodged with the corporate regulator, which showed the rapid collapse of the once high-flying development group. Administrators only allowed $147m of those claims, the documents show.
The bulk of creditors listed for the meeting chaired by DvT Group administrators Antony Resnick and Suelen McCallum, were material suppliers, subcontractors, and providers of building essentials like cranes and lifts, as well as staff.
The minutes reveal that the fugitive Mr Nassif played a crucial role in tipping the company into administration, taking just a day to email back his approval for administrators to take over.
The company’s slide into administration began on June 19 when DvT consultant Riad Tayeh and Mr Resnick attended a meeting at Sydney-based ERA Legal to discuss the affairs of Toplace and its empire.
It was attended by Toplace’s Ashlin Nassif and the company’s director of sales and marketing Phillip Meyers and chief financial officer John Pettigrew.
Four days later a meeting was held with representatives of Hong Kong-based funds manager PAG, a secured creditor of an associated entity of Toplace, to discuss that firm’s security.
PAG was a lender to the group and industry sources said it had also bought out a position held by Westpac, and an offshore entity was listed with a $159m debt in the minutes.
The company’s end came rapidly. On July 7, documents about the voluntary administration of Toplace were emailed to Mr Nassif. He then signed and returned them to DVT Group via email on the same day.
There was a setback for some entities associated with Mr Nassif, with attempts to admit some debts owed to Toplace associates rejected by DvT at the first meeting of creditors on July 19.
Proofs of debt were rejected for the purpose of the meeting included Pennant Investments Pty Ltd in the amount of $222.72m due to it being a related entity and its claim not being properly substantiated. The administrator also rejected Eveash TST Co. Pty Ltd in the amount of $5.07m for the same reason.
More than 140 people were at the first creditors meeting and the administration is expected to be among the largest property administrations in the country. There was more than 500 secured and unsecured creditors across at least 75 entities and DvT flagged it was looking at assets and liabilities well in excess of $1bn as up to 20,000 homeowners could be impacted in over 20 buildings.
DvT said that an administration usually takes six weeks but flagged that due to Toplace’s complexity and the material amount of assets and liabilities, “it is the Administrators’ view that it is unlikely that a decision of the Company’s future can be formed within the next six weeks”.
They flagged they would go to court for approval for an extension of the convening periods, to give them sufficient time to investigate.
The minutes showed that Christopher Duggan, who acts as a representative of Strata Plan 93087, which owns about 21 buildings, made an application for new administrators to be appointed.
But the plan to install Brian Silvia and Geoffrey Granger of Ferrier Silvia was voted down.
DvT were first appointed as administrators on July 7. They were able to identify the company’s related entities and were appointed as joint and several administrators of 65 entities on July 14.
There are “significant assets” across these subsidiaries and the administrator said it was better if they were handled together even as secured creditors have broken off some assets.
The administrators told the meeting that investigations into preference payments did not get underway in a voluntary administration, however they could be commenced if the company is placed into liquidation.
“This will include the investigation on whether there are any parties who have received the Company’s funds in good faith or otherwise,” they told the meeting.
Originally published as Toplace creditors lodged proof of debt claims worth $630m
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