Packer’s long-term assistant quits

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There seems no limit to James Packer’s appetite for change.

He’s taking a new wife, has moved to Tel Aviv, will shut down his family’s historic Park Street headquarters and has now waved off his long-standing assistant Jacquie Murray.

Murray had been with the Packers at Consolidated Press for two decades, but moved on in January in the latest landmark change enacted by the billionaire.

CPH boss Rob Rankin confirmed that Murray had left as Packer’s executive assistant, which he said followed the increase in the amount of time the Tel Aviv-based casino exec is spending offshore.

“After 20 years working at CPH and for James, it’s time for a change in my life,” Murray said.

“James’ new international arrangements provide the opportunity for me to take a break and begin new endeavours.

“It’s been an amazing experience and one that I will remember fondly.”

Further re-engineering his empire, Packer last year settled a billion-dollar asset split with his older sister Gretel and confirmed that he was considering a privatisation of his $4 billion Crown Resorts.

Also last month Packer announced he was to marry American pop diva Mariah Carey, who he had been dating for just eight months, in what will be the businessman’s fourth betrothal and third marriage.

Tough at the top

It’s not all work and no play for Julie Bishop.

Having flogged herself and exhausted her wardrobe for the annual G’day USA events, our Foreign Minister had some time to mix some business with pleasure in LA.

Bishop and her man-bag David Panton were seated alongside Mariah Carey and James Packer at the event’s gala, then on Monday Bishop headlined a swish function at Packer’s movie-producing business partner Brett Ratner’s home in LA, the stunning Hilhaven Lodge.

Ratner described Bishop as one of his “two favourite ladies”, alongside his grandmother Fanita, who was also at the gathering with the likes of rock legend Mick Jagger.

After beating the drum for Australia as a film industry destination, the minister, we hear, has since moved onto Europe.

Rising star

Who ever thought smash repairs and pay-day lending had so much in common?

Clearly billionaire Melbourne investor Alex Waislitz thinks so.

One of Waislitz’s star chief executives, Ray Malone — the CEO of listed smash repairer AMA Group — has presided over a trebling of the company’s share price over the past year. Its delivered a handy windfall for Waislitz’s listed Thorney Opportunities Group, which holds a cornerstone stake in AMA.

Now it seems Waislitz is so enamoured of Malone’s talents, the boss has put him on the board of another of his more troubled playthings, listed payday lender Money3.

And Malone is more than just a director: he’s also taking the chair in what is his first listed company chairmanship.

Money3’s incumbent chairman Vaughan Webber moves downtable to just a plain director.

Fellow AMA director Leath Nicholson has also joined the Money3 board. Nicholson has been providing legal advice to Money3 since 2010.

And just to completely close the loop in the Waislitz network, Ellerston Global Investments and Ellerston Asian Investments director Stuart Robertson has joined Money 3 as a director. Of course, one of the directors of Thorney Opportunities is none other than Ellerston chairman Ashok Jacob.

Downer’s gambit

Can the shareholder class action entrepreneurial lawyer Mark Elliott is running against engineers Downer over the 2010 Waratah trains debacle beat the odds and run the distance?

Most class actions settle early — sometimes just a menacing letter is enough, with no need to bother the court.

But Elliott’s case is well under way, with top commercial silk Norman O’Bryan laying out the case that Downer kept mum about the $3bn Sydney train project’s woes for months in the Victorian Supreme Court yesterday.

Downer’s best hope of shutting down the case may be its request that Justice John Digby make Elliott pay up to $1.2m into court to cover its costs so far. If that doesn’t work, uncomfortable days ahead for execs.

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