Jon Adgemis settles with former Public Group partner Peter Crinis ahead of court case

Sydney pub baron Jon Adgemis has agreed to pay out former business partner Peter Crinis for a stake in his hospitality business as the two prepared to face off in court.

Jon Adgemis with Peter Crinis while both were at Public Hospitality Group. Picture: David Swift/NCA NewsWire

Troubled Sydney pub baron Jon Adgemis has agreed to pay out former business partner Peter Crinis for a stake in the hospitality business as the two prepared to face off in court.

The NSW Supreme Court has heard that Mr Adgemis and Mr Crinis had struck a deal early Monday morning to settle the brewing legal dispute, which came after the former Crown Resorts boss lodged papers against Mr Adgemis in June.

The court heard the pair had struck a deed to settle their dispute at 8.30am on Monday, with the Public Hospitality Group boss agreeing to pay his former business partner Mr Crinis in two tranches over August and September, ahead of a new court hearing on September 6.

The terms of the settlement are secret, but sources indicated Mr Crinis was set to receive a significant haircut on the $800,000 he was seeking from Mr Adgemis.

Lawyers for Mr Crinis told the court the matter should be stood over for a new hearing in September to ensure all payments were made.

Mr Crinis had been seeking that Mr Adgemis pay him an outstanding $800,000 debt owed after striking a deal in April last year after Mr Crinis exited his consulting relationship with Mr Adgemis’s pubs, hotels and restaurants operation.

The two had struck an initial deal which saw Mr Adgemis agree to pay Mr Crinis $1.2m to extinguish his equity holding in the 22-venue Public Hospitality Group.

Court papers note that although the two had first entered into a deal in April, Mr Crinis secured a further deed of settlement and release in December followed by a third deal in April 2024, before Mr Crinis lobbed court action against Mr Adgemis.

Peter Crinis, who left the company in April amid a dispute over the running of the business, with Jon Adgemis at one of the venues in Sydney. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Swift

Public Hospitality Group, which boasts 16 operational sites across Sydney and Melbourne and a further six under renovation or construction, has been under pressure in recent months, struggling under an almost $500m debt load and a consumer spending pullback amid broader economic malaise.

The former KPMG deal-maker has spent months knocking together a debt refinancing deal for his business, with lenders Deutsche Bank underwriting a $400m refinancing in July which saw several other backers take a haircut on their debt positions.

Mr Crinis joined Public Hospitality Group in November 2021 as Mr Adgemis touted plans to list the business on the Australian Securities Exchange in a $400m play.

The former Crown executive was awarded equity in the company as part of the deal, which saw him join Public as a consultant.

But Mr Crinis left the company in April amid a dispute over the running of the business.

The latest court dispute comes in the wake of repeated rounds of litigation from others in Mr Adgemis’s orbit, including Richard Gazal, the son of late rag trader Joe Gazal.

A joint venture with former Bank of Queensland boss George Frazis over the Alpha restaurant at the Hellenic Club in Sydney’s CBD has also disintegrated after restauranter Con Dedes took over the operation in June.

Celebrity chef George Calombaris, who had run the kitchen at Alpha, is also set to take on a broader role within Public Hospitality Group ahead of a major rebrand of the operation.

This will see Public Hospitality Group dump its name and Mr Adgemis transition to a development role in a bid to complete six venues under construction.

Several assets within the Public Hospitality Group portfolio are expected to be sold or spun out under the deal.

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Peter Crinis, who left the company in April amid a dispute over the running of the business, with Jon Adgemis at one of the venues in Sydney. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Swift

Originally published as Jon Adgemis settles with former Public Group partner Peter Crinis ahead of court case