Toplace – one of Australia’s largest real estate developers – goes under, abandoning thousands of apartment owners when founder Jean Nassif disappears abroad
One of Australia’s largest and most controversial property developers, Toplace, has gone bankrupt.
The company’s founder, Jean Nassif, is believed to have fled abroad and is wanted by NSW police on fraud-related charges.
Toplace Group has been described as one of Australia’s largest privately owned development and construction companies.
The demise is expected to affect thousands of apartment buyers and contractors across Sydney, with many projects currently under construction.
Toplace founder Jean Nassif (pictured with his wife), believed to have fled abroad and is wanted by NSW police on fraud-related charges
The company’s collapse comes after Mr Nassif was banned from business last week.
Antony Resnick and Suelen McCallum of DVT Group were appointed as volunteer trustees on July 7.
Mr Resnick said it was too early to guess how much money was owed to creditors and how many would file a claim, the Australian Financial Review reported.
NSW Police had issued an arrest warrant for the developer last month amid allegations that a $150 million loan from Westpac was obtained using fraudulent pre-sale documents for a Castle Hill apartment complex.
The 55-year-old left the country on December 22.
He had previously applied to review a NSW Fair Trading decision to suspend his license for 10 years and permanently ban Toplace from carrying out construction work.
Fair Trading found that both Nassif and his firm had engaged in inappropriate behavior.
That decision was put on hold to allow the company to complete cleanup work on several apartment buildings, but the ban was reinstated last week.
The NSW Civil and Administrative Court ruled that Westpac’s loan was already in jeopardy with the arrest warrant for Nassif and there was no evidence that the developer intended to return to Australia.
Toplace also had a designated supervisor to carry out remedial work.
Lawyers for Nassif and Toplace are still opposing the decision to strip them of their licenses and a final hearing will be held at the tribunal in October.
The developer is the father of Sydney lawyer Ashlyn Nassif, who has been charged with fraud over the alleged $150 million development loan.
Earlier this year, Jean Nassif was summoned to appear before a NSW parliamentary inquiry into allegations of impropriety at Hills Shire Council, but declined to testify via video link from Lebanon for legal reasons.
More to follow