Receivers appointed to Blue Sky Alternative Investments

Receivers have been appointed to Brisbane-based Blue Sky Alternative Investments and its wallowing shares suspended from trade on the Australian Stock Exchange, after a harrowing 12 months.

EMBATTLED Brisbane fund manager Blue Sky Alternative Investments has collapsed after breaching lending terms of a $50 million lifeline.

The company, which has $2.8 billion in assets under management, announced this morning that US-based investor Oaktree Capital Management had appointed Mark Korda and Jarrod Villani of KordaMentha as receivers.

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Voluntary administrators have also stepped in, with Bradley Hellen and Nigel Markey of Pilot Partners taking on the job.

The appointments do not cover the Blue Sky Alternative Access Fund or any other subsidiary or related entity of the broader group.

In March, Blue Sky recruited Sydney investment boss Joel Cann as chief executive officer

Blue Sky’s demise comes just a little over a year after its share price collapsed following a brutal assessment of the business by US short-sellers Glaucus Research, which alleged the group had exaggerated its assets under management and charged excessive fees.

Since then the company, which reported a $26 million loss in the December half, has seen an exodus of senior management, threats of class action lawsuits and a probe by the corporate regulator.

The share price has crashed from a high of $14.99 in late 2017, valuing the company at $1.16 billion, to just 18.5 cents on Monday.

Mark Sowerby floated the firm in 2012 after raising $7.5 million and stepped down as CEO in 2016, selling $28 million worth of shares even as he remained a major shareholder.

He sold another $7.4 million worth of the stock just four months before the Glaucus bombshell and still owns 4.4 million now-worthless shares in the company.

After leaving the company, Sowerby took on the voluntary role as Queensland’s Chief Entrepreneur for a year starting in 2016. He did not return a call seeking comment on Monday.

KordaMentha said Blue Sky had breached a financial covenant on March 31 under a convertible note facility.

26/Mark Korda, from KordaMentha. Picture: Hollie Adams/The Australian

“The appointment follows a period of significant instability and uncertainty for all stakeholders, including further commentary regarding possible class actions, turnover of senior corporate executives and departure of certain limited partners,’’ KordaMentha said in a statement.

Mr Korda said he would now aim “to stabilize the business as a strategic assessment is undertaken’’.

“The appointment will not affect the day-to-day operating activities of Blue Sky and its investment management business subsidiaries,’’ he said.

Before the short-seller attack last year, the stock was trading at $11.43.

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