A rare backward step for PAC’s Larcombe; WithWine a little on the nose
The name PAC Capital might still be atop a Macquarie St office building but its founder, Clayton Larcombe – a consummate self-promoter with a fund of flattering and apocryphal stories of his own moxie – is stepping back from the business.
Yes, all that bluster from Larcombe about lawyering up and pursuing journalists over recent, ah, journalism, seems to have led him instead to a decision to step away as PAC Capital’s CEO, or so investors will be told on Wednesday, according to a client note obtained by Margin Call.
And rather than a “step back” from his board appointments, the note confirms he will “step down” as a director of betting concern Picklebet and Clearwater Portfolio Management.
Not clear, however, what role Larcombe will continue to play in PAC Capital, if at all, given he’s its sole director and secretary.
Clients will be told that Larcombe’s reduced presence will be to spend more time with his family and “newborn twins”, with funds management veteran Harvey Kalman to be appointed as his replacement overseeing $450m in funds reportedly under management. Kalman spent two decades at Equity Trustees, PAC Capital’s responsible entity, and will join as its executive chair.
The announcement punctuates a trail of recent questions over Larcombe’s work history, his credentials, and his bitter displeasure with media coverage of both. At the start of the month he penned a three-page letter to investors (also obtained by Margin Call) denouncing “a relentless witch hunt by certain individuals to seek to destroy my industry standing”.
That was written one day after the Financial Review queried elements of Larcombe’s CV as it was published on LinkedIn. He claimed to have worked for JPMorgan for two years, but the newspaper reported that he was actually employed for only three months, citing an industry source. Another wrinkle: the degree he claimed to have obtained from the University of Sydney was not known to be offered. Ruh-roh.
The LinkedIn profile was subsequently removed, although Larcombe defended himself by saying “any inference that I have made up my work history is laughable”. And as for why he removed the LinkedIn profile, Larcombe put that down to a “tidy up” and a “technical glitch”. It’s back online now, and it’s certainly tidier. No mention of his experience at Morgan Stanley or JPMorgan, or anywhere else except for PAC Capital.
Not that any of this would bother him. After all, Larcombe is a guy who takes hardship in his stride. Thus the story, of his own telling, of how he interrupted a Morgan Stanley MD’s lunch at Machiavelli to tell him “you’ve made a big mistake” after being knocked back for an internship. We suspect that yarn might have benefited from a bit of gilding.
Wine worries
Software company WithWine, started by Richard Owens, grandson of Macquarie Bank founder Stan Owens, is smelling a little corked, judging by some of the customer feedback we’re hearing about.
The platform is simple enough, connecting wineries directly with people who don’t mind a drop. But not all has gone to plan since Owens the Younger skipped off to San Francisco on a capital-raising mission in May.
In an email to the team that month he seemed to talk up the prospects of a “few irons in the fire”, describing “strong interest” from a descendant of Richard Hennessy, founder of the cognac now owned by LVMH, to invest $250,000.
A “tech guy who used to code nuclear warheads” was thinking about chucking in the same amount, among others. There was even talk of meetings with Pernod Ricard and the venture team at Treasury Wine Estates.
These, we’re led to believe, did not amount to the wellspring of capital as promised. Owens himself, in the same email, said the goal of raising $US5m by the end of May was looking unlikely, hence the need to examine “alternative funding sources”.
Whether or not those alternatives have been secured, the software itself is apparently causing no end of frustration for some clients, the most prominent being Henschke, whose people have lodged formal complaints about performance and customer experience.
It doesn’t look like they’ve dropped the platform just yet, but Margin Call is led to believe they’re looking at options. Another client, Duke’s Vineyard, closed their account a month ago, citing a host of difficulties, as did Wise Wine, who are seeking a not insignificant sum of money for sheer number of hours lost.
No word of reply when we contacted Owens for a response.
Hooray for Henry
Mike Henry shan’t be fretting about the cost of living with a 4 per cent rise to his pay taking effect next month. It should see his base of $US1.74m ($2.7m) appreciate to $US1.84m, and while that extra $US100,000 seems impressive, there’s devil in the detail.
If Henry hits short-term and long-term performance targets, the increase to his base multiplies by up to 3.2 times, in addition to the base itself. Assuming a standout performance, he’d receive up to $US120,000 for his maximum short-term cash reward, and another $US200,000 via his share-based, long-term reward.
Altogether, he’s looking at a $US420,000 jump.
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