BPS sinks rivals at Chartered Accountants regatta

BPS Recovery team winners from (L) Mitchell Ball, Dan Frisken, Rob Pizzie and Max Prentice 

FRIDAY was a triumph for the men and women of BPS Recovery after partner Max Prentice's Ticket of Leave (TOL) trounced the competition at the annual Chartered Accountants Regatta on Sydney Harbour.

With son Matt at the helm, Prentice scooped the Division A teams event, winning the coveted Liquidators Cup in the process. Fellow BPS team skipper Rob Pizzie took second aboard Tonic to entrench the glory among the red and white caps, who continued their dominance back at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia by securing coveted tables closest to the free paella.

Once the results were announced the only complaints came from Prentice's knees as he made multiple trips to the podium to accept trophies, to take possession of Musto-sponsored prizes and to pose for pictures.

Coshott win could be curtains for Prentice

BPS Recovery partner
and bankruptcy trustee
Max Prentice.

MAX Prentice's grip on the bankrupt estate of Robert Gilbert Coshott may have loosened a tad this week after Federal Court judge Jayne Jagot on Tuesday overturned the decision of her Circuit Court counterpart Rolf Driver on appeal from the bankrupt's brother.

In May Judge Driver ruled on an application by Ronald Michael Coshott and Fewin Pty Ltd seeking confirmation of their status as creditors in the bankrupt's estate and an order compelling Prentice to call a meeting of creditors. In rejecting the application Judge Driver expressed doubts about aspects of the applicants' claim.

"I have a general difficulty with the asserted assignments of debt from Fewin to Mr RM Coshott," Judge Driver said in his judgment of May 29, 2015.

".... there is no reliable evidence of any consideration for those assignments. The evidence advanced by the applicants consists of the minutes of a meeting of Fewin held on 23 August 2013 where it was resolved that $359,487.08 payable by Mr RM Coshott under the deed of assignment of debts from Fewin to Mr RM Coshott be paid by way of repayment by Fewin of moneys allegedly owed by Fewin to Mr RM Coshott, and that the company’s accounting records be adjusted to reflect this. The minutes are signed by Mr RM Coshott," Judge Driver said.

"There is, however, no other evidence of the asserted debt owed by Fewin to Mr RM Coshott . He was called upon to produce the books and records of Fewin for the purposes of these proceedings but nothing material was produced. I infer that such records of the company as may exist would not have assisted him," Judge Driver added.

EXCLUSIVE: Prentice may grill billionaire Mother over bankrupt son's mortgage

Max Prentice of BPS Recovery

SYDNEY-based bankruptcy trustee Max Prentice may seek to formally question one of Australia's richest women after being appointed trustee of the bankrupt estate of West Australian businessman Grant Bennett.

45 year old Bennett is the son of Angela Bennett, whose late father Peter Wright shared in the riches generated after he and his prospecting partner the late Lang Hancock identified and staked claim to much of the Pilbarra region's vast iron ore reserves. Ms Bennett's net worth is estimated at around $1 billion net, thanks to a half share in Wright Prospecting and a swag of property interests.

Grant Bennett declared himself bankrupt earlier this year via a debtor's petition filed in Adelaide after defaulting on loans extended by JWH Nominees, the private financing vehicle of the Sydney-based Hunt family, which sold out of Primo Small Goods in 2011.

The money was initially lent to Strategic Investment & Trading Pty Ltd, which spent $8.7 million buying farmland around Boddington south of Perth. The plan was to subdivide and sell to wealthy Asian investors.

Under the terms of an agreement with Strategic, Grant Bennett was then going to buy the farm from Strategic for $17.6 million, thereby enabling Strategic to repay JWH.

When Bennett's company, GKB Property Pty Ltd failed to obtain alternative financing to complete the transaction, JWH put receivers in charge of Strategic.

According to a report by journalist Neale Prior published in The West Australian last week, Grant Bennett provided personal guarantees on the loans to Strategic. Default interest rates of 39 percent have applied since July, 2013.

Prior's report also says JWH had hoped Angela Bennett would bail out her son. She refused and Grant Bennett then made an offer which JWH deemed unacceptable. He filed a debtor's petition with the Australian Financial Security Authority (AFSA) in Adelaide on January 12, 2015.

By declaring himself bankrupt, Grant Bennett's estate became the responsibility of the Official Receiver. However JWH Nominees then intervened, applying under Section 181 of the Bankruptcy Act to replace the Official Receiver with Prentice of BPS Recovery. Angela Bennett, who is also a creditor of her son, did not respond and Prentice was appointed trustee of Grant Bennett's estate on March 6, 2015.

The appointment of Prentice is likely to refocus scrutiny on potentially recoverable assets, principle of which is a mansion Grant Bennett occupies in Perth's exclusive Mosman Park.

Purchased in 2010, the property is mortgaged to Angela Bennett and without a settlement, Ms Bennett may well find herself summoned to answer detailed questions about the mortgage and its terms.

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Old insolvency guys just go sailing

Max Prentice at the helm of Ticket of Leave
Photo: Beth Morley @ www.sportssailingphotography.com 

WHEN not engineering commercial outcomes from insolvent scenarios, BPS Recovery co-founder Max Prentice can often be found aboard his beloved Beneteau 40.7, Ticket of Leave, carousing, competing and, on more than the odd occasion, winning.

Most recently, Prentice and an unlikely crew stunned the rest of the 39-strong fleet to take two line honours wins and a Division One non-spinnaker victory in the 23rd annual Sydney Beneteau Cup.

With characteristic modesty Prentice said: "We found the courses fair and we blitzed the field", the "we" being Prentice and his crew, none of whom were under 60 years of age and which included Meyer Knight's Jon Meyer on mainsail, who turns 70 on December 30.

"We have a lot of old farts on board, but that worked pretty well," Prentice added as the post-race celebrations kicked off.

What do they say about old age and treachery? Clearly a winning, if malodorous combination.

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Millionaire bankrupt's dishoarderly affairs

The interior of Arcadia Road
Photo courtesy BPS Recovery

BPS Recovery's Max Prentice wants guardians to manage the assets of a bankrupt who filled his five properties with newspapers, textbooks and batteries.

The bankrupt, who SiN has chosen not to identify, is a former university lecturer with a degree in chemical engineering and an extensive property portfolio.

"In 40 years in practice I have never had such an asset-rich bankrupt," Prentice, trustee in bankruptcy and co-principal of BPS Recovery said.

"The bankrupt had unencumbered title to four properties in Glebe and one in Newtown."

The bankrupt's debts are estimated at around $180,000, while the value of his assets exceeds $2 million. Normally this would result in an annulment, but there's nothing normal about this technical insolvency. 

The man was declared bankrupt on April 10, 2012 after utilities suppliers petitioned the Federal Court over thousands of dollars in outstanding bills.

Prentice accepted the appointment in June 2012 and immediately slapped caveats on a large Victorian terrace in Arcadia Road, Glebe, two apartments in nearby Sheehy St, another in Charlton Way and an apartment in Chelmsford Street, Newtown. None of the properties were encumbered by mortgages but neither the title deeds nor the bankrupt could be located.

Prentice wins possession after Coshott claims dismissed

The Bunyala Road property of bankrupt
Robert Coshott to be repossessed by Max Prentice.
Photo: SiN Images

BANKRUPTCY trustee Max Prentice has won possession of a rambling property in Bunyala Road, Bellevue Hill valued at up to $4 million.

On Tuesday, Federal Court Judge Robert Buchanan ordered the large residential home vest with Prentice as trustee for sale.

The judge gave the bankrupt, Robert Gilbert Coshott, his wife Ljiljana and their sons James and Michael 42 days to clear out. You can read Coshott V Coshott (2013) here.

The BPS Recovery partner's win, which includes costs, was facilitated by insolvency lawyer Sally Nash. It concludes a relatively short court battle that was preceded by years of litigation between the bankrupt, his former trustee John Burke, and more recently, the bankrupt's son James. 

Burke relinquished the appointment in February this year, leaving the way open for Prentice to attempt to recover a half share of the large home.

Burke passes Coshott baton to Prentice

BPS Recovery partner
Max Prentice. 

IT was an unusual little meeting at the offices of the Official Trustee in Bankruptcy last month.

There were two private trustees present. A third and fourth attended by proxy. And each was vying to take on the trusteeship of the bankrupt estate of Robert Gilbert Coshott.

Coshott is a former solicitor who was struck off the roll in 1997. He was bankrupted in 2008 on a creditors petition filed by Shipton Lodge Cobbity following a dispute over agistment fees.

Before the meeting on March 21 this year the Official Trustee administered the estate, having taken over from former trustee, John Burke on February 25, 2013.

Burke's resignation was approved after he told the Federal Court personal reasons had compounded the difficulty of managing “a very complex bankruptcy administration”.

BPS Recovery bests regatta rivals

Max Prentice being relieved of his trophy
Photo: SiN Images

FATHER and son team Max and Matt Prentice took the honours last Friday when seafaring numerati assembled for the Institute of Chartered Accountant's regatta.

Max's Ticket of Leave led the way for BPS Recovery, crossing the line first ahead of Eagle Rock, owned by O'Brien Palmer's Bryan Collis and Tonic, carrying BPS partner, Dave Sampson.

The shortened course gave race participants time to rehydrate on board before the official rehydration at the Cruising Yacht Club's bar, an event interrupted briefly by the presentation ceremony.

This was the third time Max has won the trophy, which SiN was assured is much coveted by liquidators. 

For SiN the event was about tapping into what's occupying the minds of accounting's insolvency operators. 

Apparently further regulatory examination, focussing on individual practitioners, is anticipated and as the rum flowed, those likely to be subjects of the inquisitors' inquiries were speculated upon.

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Hillsong stung by Affinity fallout

Bankrupt ex-Affinity director
Daniel Ku. Photo: SiN Images.

THERE’S plenty of forgiveness in the Castle Hill chapter of the Hillsong church.

Three years after dozens of parishioners lost almost $5 million in bad property investments spruiked by two church members, SiN understands the pair still attend services.

Forgetting however, is not as easy. Former church member Dr Leslie Indrasith lost $400,000 investing in the high-yield property investments promoted by his fellow church goers, Daniel Kaming Ku, 40, Adrian Ming-Chi Chen, 36 and Darren Garwai Chek, 35.

The three men were founders and directors of Affinity Capital Pty Ltd, a property investment business that grew out of their work as mortgage brokers.

They initially funded Affinity through a mixture of loans from financial institutions, family members and friends.

But after the group collapsed in late 2008 owing almost $15 million to unsecured creditors, extensive investigations by liquidator Gavin Moss found no compelling evidence of fraud or Corporations Law breaches.

What Moss did find was a litany of the failings so prevalent across the property development sector.