Forum Finance liquidators ramp up asset sales, including three luxury cars

Liquidators of Forum Finance are seeking to retrieve as much as possible of the $500m allegedly fraudulently obtained from Westpac and other creditors.

Forum CEO Bill Papas's former racing Audi, which has been sold by McGrathNicol.

The liquidators of Forum Finance and its related entities have sold off three luxury cars tied up in the group’s demise, as they seek to retrieve as much as possible of the $500m allegedly fraudulently obtained from Westpac and other creditors.

The Australian understands McGrathNicol has privately sold two racing Audis and separately offloaded an Audi RS Q8 at auction, as it unpicks the complex web of Forum entities.

The liquidators are also seeking to sell a spate of properties, a luxury yacht, waste-digester machines and other assets linked to the entities and directors of Forum Group Financial Services Bill Papas and Vincenzo Tesoriero.

The liquidator’s report to creditors this week said the alleged fraud occurring at Forum had potentially been conducted since at least 2013, and garnered more than $500m. They found Forum Group Financial Services – of which Mr Papas and Mr Tesoriero each held 50 per cent in a personal capacity – was a key entity used to move funds around.

The report noted Mr Tesoriero was a director of that entity from November 2018 to April 30 last year, leaving Mr Papas as the sole director from that date.

Greek-Australian businessman Bill Papas in Thessaloniki, Greece.

Westpac, Societe Generale and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation are separately pursuing Forum and Mr Papas in the Federal Court related to allegations of fraud amounting to $400m.

Westpac’s action is linked to claims of phony equipment leases and forged signatures used by Forum to obtain bank funding dating back to 2018, a shorter period than that assessed by McGrathNicol.

Mr Papas is holed up in Greece, where he has been since June, and is now also the subject of a contempt of court motion by Westpac, due to damning allegations he breached an order not to access his frozen bank and financial accounts.

Court documents and the liquidator’s report reveal Mr Papas and Mr Tesoriero were living a lavish lifestyle, ahead of their assets being frozen by the court.

The liquidator’s review found Forum Group Financial Services – which was not an operating entity and had no employees – had $2.9m worth of vehicles in its accounts on their appointment.

“The provisional liquidators understand the underlying assets comprising this vehicles balance includes high-end vehicles, Forum

race cars, boats, jet skis and trailers. In a number of cases, these vehicles are subject to leases, have been damaged and others which are registered in either Mr Papas’ or Mr Tesoriero’ s personal name which complicates the realisation process.”

The report showed McGrathNicol had secured a number of vehicles which had been realised or were in the process of being sold.

“This includes a high-end vehicle leased through NAB (National Australia Bank) which has been sold, crystallising a shortfall of circa $40k which NAB propose to set off against the cash balance,” it said.

“Consequently, recovery of this balance is currently ongoing. We estimate a (vehicle) recovery range of nil to circa $1.2m.”

Last month, a Porsche previously owned and raced by Mr Papas was disposed of by McGrathNicol but for no financial gain.

The Porsche is understood to have been effectively handed back to Macquarie Group, given much of the lease was still to be paid by Mr Papas on the car worth an estimated $600,000.

The parties return to court on Wednesday as the fraud hearing continues.