NewsBite

Advertisement

Curious deals of billionaire Richard White and his wife Zena Nasser

By Max Mason, Kate McClymont and Nick McKenzie

On the same day Richard White stepped down as chief executive of WiseTech Global after weeks of pressure, the billionaire found time for another important change – quietly appointing his new wife, Zena Nasser, to the board of his private investment company.

A week later on November 2, Nasser, a former criminal lawyer, became a 50 per cent owner of the enterprise, which includes assets such as an anti-money laundering start-up and the company that financed a controversial multimillion-dollar property previously owned by her ex-husband.

Zena Nasser is now a director and shareholder of Richard White’s personal investment vehicle.

Zena Nasser is now a director and shareholder of Richard White’s personal investment vehicle.Credit: TikTok

The corporate restructure puts the spotlight on the blurred lines between White’s personal and business interests. Before removing her LinkedIn profile, Nasser listed the “Richard and Zena White Family Office” among her job titles. White and Nasser married in July in Austin, Texas, where they welcomed a daughter born via an American surrogate.

Nasser became a director of RealWise Group Holdings DT Pty Ltd, the parent company for many of White’s investments, on October 24. This is different to RealWise Holdings Pty Ltd, which holds White’s 37.4 per cent stake in WiseTech Global. He now owns RealWise Holdings outright after WiseTech co-founder Maree Isaacs sold her 8 per cent stake in it to him last week.

RealWise Group Holdings DT in turn owns Kyckr, which provides data and software so companies, particularly financial institutions, can meet their Know Your Customer and anti-money laundering obligations. White bought the then-ASX-listed Kyckr for $43.5 million in early 2023.

Nasser is a former criminal defence lawyer who once had an array of Sydney underworld figures as clients. These included bikie boss Hassan Kalache, drug importer Michael Ibrahim (the brother of Kings Cross identity John Ibrahim) and gang leader Bassam Hamzy.

She was banned from visiting jails in NSW in 2007 because corrective services had reason to believe that she was forwarding her clients’ calls to their associates outside prison.

In 2012, she was briefly a director and shareholder of Krazye Dave Pty Ltd, a company associated with one-time Notorious bikie gang enforcer Sofe Veiru Levi, better known as “Crazy Dave” Lima.

Nasser declined to answer specific questions on property dealings and the trust structure changes, instead providing a general response.

Advertisement

“Since ceasing her criminal law practice, Zena has had no contact with any of her former clients,” she said. “Zena is a director of a number of companies, including trustee companies of family trusts.”

RealWise Group Holdings DT is also the ultimate parent company of RealWise Finance. An investigation by the Herald, The Age and The Australian Financial Review last month revealed RealWise Finance was bankrolling a multimillion-dollar property development in Sydney’s west, which was recommended to White by Nasser’s ex-husband, Mark Merhi.

Richard White with wife Zena Nasser. The couple married in July.

Richard White with wife Zena Nasser. The couple married in July.

Merhi is a 50-year-old failed property developer who left for Dubai while development companies faced debts of $80 million. He was a suspect in a firebombing investigation in the mid-2000s.

RealWise Finance lent millions of dollars and registered mortgages on a development on Horsley Drive, Fairfield and another on Raglan Road, Auburn. Both properties are owned by an associate of Merhi, Ahmad Ahmad. Merhi’s failing company also sold the Fairfield property development to Ahmad’s company for $13.5 million in 2020, a $5.5 million loss compared to when Merhi bought it in 2016.

In an October 2022 report, liquidator Stephen Hathway from Helm Advisory told creditors it may have been an uncommercial transaction as the site “had a potential sale value of $23,300,000”.

Six days after questions were sent to White’s lawyers regarding the loans and property developments, the billionaire and Nasser set up three new companies, which they jointly own.

Both White and Nasser are directors and equal shareholders of 366 The Horsley Drive Fairfield DT Pty Ltd, 16-22 Raglan Road Auburn DT Pty and 7 Second Avenue Blacktown DT Pty, the address of another property associated with Ahmad which was bought from a Merhi firm.

White said these companies were set up because he agreed with Ahmad to acquire the three properties before receiving questions because they needed additional funds above loan amounts to be completed.

“At this stage, we have an ‘agreement in principle’ subject to formal documentation and completion of each of the sales,” he said.

He said his finance team and external lawyers led the acquisitions, and valuations had been done at arm’s length.

“We recently established three discretionary trusts in which each of the properties will be transferred to once the sales are completed. Large property developments are typically structured within a special purpose vehicle (SPV),” White said.

“These property acquisitions, once completed, will be long-term property holdings with the beneficiaries of each of the three discretionary trusts being our immediate family, including our children, and do not include any other parties.”

White said he has no more dealings with Ahmad or Merhi.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.

Most Viewed in Business

Loading

Original URL: https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/curious-deals-of-billionaire-richard-white-and-his-wife-zena-nasser-20241204-p5kvw4.html