Opes Prime administrator collects from director's parents

THE parents of disgraced Opes Prime director Anthony Blumberg have paid the failed stock lender $340,000, part of $4.5 million hauled in by the company's administrator earlier this year.

By InvestSMART · 8 Sep 2011

By InvestSMART ·
8 Sep 2011

Comments

THE parents of disgraced Opes Prime director Anthony Blumberg have paid the failed stock lender $340,000, part of $4.5 million hauled in by the company's administrator earlier this year.

Accounts filed by Opes Prime's administrator, John Lindholm of Ferrier Hodgson, show the single biggest payment collected in the six months from February to July was about $3.5 million, representing a payout from Opes Prime's investment in power management company Energy Response.

Former Opes Prime staff also made payments totalling about $5000.

Mr Lindholm filed the accounts in his role as administrator of a scheme of arrangement under which Opes Prime's bankers, ANZ and Merrill Lynch, have so far paid 37? in the dollar to former customers owed about $610 million.

The accounts list the $340,200 received from Basil and Carole Blumberg on June 10 as "accounts receivable (pre-appointment)".

It is believed the money is the proceeds of the sale of a unit at the Brighton on Bay retirement village bought by the couple in March 2008, just before Opes Prime's collapse.

Ferrier Hodgson and the Blumbergs had been locked in a dispute over the unit, with the insolvency firm insisting the unit was bought using money from a company in the Opes Prime group, Leveraged Capital.

A receptionist at the Brighton on Bay retirement village said the couple had purchased the unit but had never actually moved into it. A $3.5 million payment from Energy Response was the proceeds of the sale of the company to US group EnerNOC in early July, Energy Response's executive director Ross Fraser said.

He said Opes Prime's private equity arm, Hawkswood, "invested in Energy Response a number of years ago".

"They therefore received a payment for those shares when EnerNOC took over the company," he said.

Go to Google News, then click "Follow" button to add us.

Share this article and show your support

Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…

What payment did Opes Prime's administrator collect from the parents of director Anthony Blumberg?

Opes Prime's administrator recorded a payment of $340,200 received from Basil and Carole Blumberg on June 10, listed as 'accounts receivable (pre-appointment)'. Media reports say the money is believed to be proceeds from the sale of a unit at the Brighton on Bay retirement village the couple bought in March 2008.

How much money did Opes Prime's administrator recover during the six months to July?

Accounts filed by administrator John Lindholm show the single biggest collection in the six months from February to July was about $3.5 million, and the administrator hauled in about $4.5 million in total during that period.

Where did the $3.5 million payment to Opes Prime come from?

The $3.5 million payment was a payout from Opes Prime’s investment in power-management company Energy Response. That payment followed the sale of Energy Response to US group EnerNOC in early July.

What role did Hawkswood and Energy Response play in the Opes Prime recoveries?

Opes Prime’s private equity arm, Hawkswood, had invested in Energy Response some years earlier. When EnerNOC acquired Energy Response, Opes Prime (via Hawkswood) received a payment for those shares, which produced the roughly $3.5 million collection reported by the administrator.

How much have banks paid back to former Opes Prime customers so far?

Under the scheme of arrangement, Opes Prime’s bankers ANZ and Merrill Lynch have so far paid 37 cents in the dollar to former customers who are owed about $610 million.

Did former Opes Prime staff contribute any money to the administration?

Yes. The administrator’s accounts show payments from former Opes Prime staff totalling about $5,000.

Was there a dispute over the Brighton on Bay unit bought by the Blumbergs?

Yes. Ferrier Hodgson and Basil and Carole Blumberg were in dispute: the insolvency firm maintained the unit was bought using funds from Leveraged Capital (an Opes Prime group company). A receptionist at the village confirmed the couple purchased the unit but never moved in.

What does these collections mean for everyday investors affected by the Opes Prime collapse?

The administrator has been collecting varied recoveries — including $3.5 million from the sale of Energy Response and a $340,200 payment from the director’s parents — as part of efforts to repay creditors. Under the scheme, ANZ and Merrill Lynch have already paid 37% of amounts owed to former customers, who were collectively owed about $610 million.