Palmer takes it to a whole new level

Illustration: Rod Clement.

Recent Mediterranean cruise tourist Clive Palmer was uncharacteristically shy when spotted in Sydney’s CBD. What brings him to the Emerald City?

The former Member for Fairfax was tight-lipped as he waited for an elevator. Thankfully, the building’s directory was more helpful.

Palmer was off to a set of floors dominated by Richard Spurio’s law firm Allens.

That’s interesting. The venerable firm has represented one of Palmer’s many legal foes, Chinese state-backed conglomerate Citic, who have been in a years long battle against the troubled mogul in the Supreme Court.

A judgment is still to be delivered after the fight over royalties was heard in the Supreme Court in Perth a month ago.

Chang Zhenming’s Citic — which previously went by the patriotic name, China International Trust Investment Corporation — has threatened to close the $12 billion Sino Iron project by the end of the year, citing difficulties with Palmer’s Mineralogy.

The shutting of Sino Iron would halt Palmer’s greatest source of future cash flow. Currently, about $4 million a year flows Palmer’s way — enough to cover more than a few cruise holidays for Palmer and his vagabond nephew Clive Mensink.

With a tangle of litigation over the fallen Queensland Nickel still unresolved, a settlement with Citic must have its attractions.

All that noted, it is possible Palmer wasn’t actually heading to Allens. Also serviced by the same elevator are the Sydney outposts of Chinese utilities State Grid Corp and fellow Chinese state-owned giant Sinopec International.

Could Palmer be cooking up a fresh deal with Xi Jinping’s Middle Kingdom? Surely not.

No Shayne, no gain

These are interesting times for staff at Shayne Elliott’s ANZ.

In the good news column, all 50,000-odd ANZ employees have just been sent a copy of the must-read Message from Shayne — a publishing enterprise that’s really outdone “Brian’s Blog”, the sunny patch of intranet over at his big four rival Brian Hartzer’s Westpac.

Elliott’s lovingly printed message is the sort of thing you’d expect from a hierarchy-smashing, agile banking chieftain with a reputation for finding inspiration in the coffee shops of Amsterdam.

In the bad news column — for staff if not shareholders — at least one enthusiastic Elliot backer has come to the view after meeting the ANZ chieftain for a lunch (not in Amsterdam but Melbourne), that the bank is on track to halve its staff numbers to 25,000. At least the departed will have the memories — and the Elliott penned message/essay/scrapbook.

The debut “Message from Shayne” makes a lot out of the late, great David Bowie.

“As a kid in the 1970s, I was a huge fan of David Bowie. Truth is I still am,” Elliott begins his message. “When I was preparing for my role as ANZ’s chief executive 18 months ago, I read a quote from Bowie that reflected the challenge I saw for us at our bank.”

Sure the ANZ chieftain’s management theory is cringeworthy, but at least his music taste is terrific.

Indeed, we’re told Elliott’s favourite Bowie song is “Life on Mars”, which sits at No 1 on music bible Pitchfork’s best 200 songs of the 1970s — and, of course, is one of the anthems of the more celestial pockets of Amsterdam.

Mac on the move

Taking a different approach to banking in Australia is Macquarie Group’s loaded chief executive Nicholas Moore, who continues to indulge threats about relocating his Millionaire Factory to the tax haven of Singapore, last week repeating the claim that the investment bank’s headquarters is something they “continuously review”.

Macquarie chief executive Nicholas Moore. Picture: Stuart McEvoy.

Please. Few think it will happen on Moore’s watch, bank levy or not. It’s the sort of decision that would likely bring a swift end to his plum appointment as the chair of the Sydney Opera House trust, a gift of NSW’s Coalition government.

Today Moore’s speaking at a lunch in Sydney for the Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce — not that you’ll be reading about his thoughts on his bank’s global operations, recent developments in the world’s major economies or any updates on his relocation scheme.

On Macquarie’s instruction, media have been barred from the room. How Singaporean.

Bricks and brickbats

Just over a year ago, the late Gough Whitlam’s childhood home in Kew was demolished. Even by Australian standards, it was a decision that displayed a stunning lack of sentimentality.

True believers will be cheered to learn on Saturday night, something was salvaged from the mess left by the bulldozers of Boroondara Council.

Gough Whitlam’s childhood home being demolished.

A brick from the Great Man’s former home was auctioned for more than $2000 at the Australian Republic Movement’s dinner in Melbourne — the one where Bill Shorten pledged to hold a vote on Australia becoming a republic in the first term of a Shorten government. If only the Heritage Council of Victoria was as generous.

The Whitlam relic, it lent a bit of history to the funding drive that is being overseen by the ARM’s chairman Peter FitzSimons.

Saturday night’s almost 900-strong dinner at the Royal Exhibition Building has helped fill the expanding outfit’s coffers.

Among those along to hear songman Paul Kelly perform and Shorten speak were former Foreign Minister Gareth Evans, the ACTU secretary Sally McManus, Amber Harrison’s former barrister Julian Burnside and George Pell’s current barrister Rob Richter.