Embattled Elanor Investors Group eyes Centuria Capital’s Jesse Curtis for top job

The Mayfair Hotel in Adelaide recently sold for $75m.

Centuria Capital’s head of funds management Jesse Curtis is understood to have been poached to run the embattled Elanor Investors Group.

It comes as Elanor Investors Group is in detailed talks to enter a recapitalisation plan with Singapore’s Sim Lian Holdings, the company behind Rockworth Capital, which has been one of Elanor’s major investors, holding over 10 per cent in the ASX listed group.

It is understood that the Singaporeans may be working with a party represented by Boston Global, the family office of former top Macquarie executive Bill Moss.

Mr Curtis has been a rising star at Centuria since joining in 2019, and was promoted last year from the head of the group’s listed industrial real estate investment trust to a role overseeing the group’s overall funds business, which controls over $20bn of assets under management.

It is understood he has been offered a lucrative package to take the reins at the troubled business that has been at the mercy of its lenders for about a year.

Whether Mr Curtis lands the job and whether the recapitalisation proceeds may rest on if its key investors remain committed to the business, with reports some large backers are eager to take their funds elsewhere.

Already, Challenger is believed to have opted to move money away from Elanor to instead invest with Charter Hall.

Elanor has been involved in an asset selldown program and moves to stabilise its balance sheet after its high debt level resulted in it breaching agreements with its lenders.

It suspended trading and cancelled its distribution as it considered a range of options to stabilise and maintain its ongoing financial position, where its debt was at 45 per cent of its equity.

It last updated investors on the ASX in April, saying that corporate noteholders owed $40m had waived covenant breaches and increased the notes coupon to a fixed rate of 15 per cent per annum.

It was to be paid quarterly, but reducing to 12 per cent following the repayment of debt to lender Keyview.

Elanor struck a $125m refinancing deal with Keyview Financial Group last year.

Advising on the refinancing was MA Moelis, while Citi advised on sale options.

The company is also selling hotel assets within the Elanor Hotel Accommodation Fund and will exit the hotels, tourism and leisure sector.

It is understood assets under management in the fund are worth slightly less than $500m.

Key assets are Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain Lodge and the Mayfair Hotel in Adelaide, with the announced sale of the latter in recent days for $75m, below its $91m book value.

Within the fund, Elanor has about $75m of its own invested capital, which could get written down.

Established in 2009, Elanor Investors is an ASX-listed real estate funds management group, managing more than $6.2bn of real estate investments across Australia and New Zealand.

It originates and manages real estate assets to deliver returns for both Elanor’s funds management capital partners and Elanor securityholders.

The business was previously run by former Lehman Brothers Australia head Glenn Willis, who co-founded Moss Capital and Grange Securities, which was bought by Lehman Brothers.

He stepped down last year.

For the six months to December 2023 – the last results reported by Elanor – it posted a $23.8m loss, while net debt was $46.5m.

It had loans to ENN Group, EHAF Group, Bluewater and Stirling.