Prominent South Australian businessman Ed Peter appointed his wife to run one of his investment empire’s unlisted hospitality funds after he fell out with his business partner, publican Brett Matthews.

Mr Peter, the former head of Deutsche Asset Management in Asia, runs the Duxton Group of funds, which invests in assets from real estate to agriculture. But the company has been under significant financial strain, limiting withdrawals by shareholders in one fund while putting large portfolios of farms and vineyards on the market in others.