Out of curiosity, have you posted over at GHPC forum?
It is quite possible the reactions over there may be less indifferent, and they may have more ideas on actions to take etc...
Cheers,
The Y-man
Blue Chip Summary Post
- Thread starter alexlee
- Start date
Out of curiosity, have you posted over at GHPC forum?
It is quite possible the reactions over there may be less indifferent, and they may have more ideas on actions to take etc...
Cheers,
The Y-man
general public-a novice
i am one of those novice general public,not a hardened expiranced investor.The property forum and this forum have helped me to stay well away from bcfs type co's in my persuit to become a wiser property investor.i was at one stage tempeted to the the bcfs way but friends got involved directly and opened my eyes to the pitfalls.iam now doing my own reaserch where to invest in property via this and other forums.
i am one of those novice general public,not a hardened expiranced investor.The property forum and this forum have helped me to stay well away from bcfs type co's in my persuit to become a wiser property investor.i was at one stage tempeted to the the bcfs way but friends got involved directly and opened my eyes to the pitfalls.iam now doing my own reaserch where to invest in property via this and other forums.
Alex, I'm sure you get the odd new property investor wandering through this forum who might even be considering and investment with Northern Crest / Barkley Walsh. Any further exposure of Bryers is good and it's not hurting the forum.
Neil Jenman warning on Mark Bryers
Neil Jenman warning on Mark Bryers
So here's my request to those of you affected by this: I would like to see you contribute to threads like
http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39101
to point out the potential dangers, and what due diligence needs to be done prior to signing the dotted line etc.
Cheers,
The Y-man
http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39101
to point out the potential dangers, and what due diligence needs to be done prior to signing the dotted line etc.
Cheers,
The Y-man
One down...
The dragon roars
5:00AM Sunday June 08, 2008
By Jane Phare
Sir Bob Jones is trying to bankrupt one of the co-founders of Blue Chip, the company which has left 3000 Kiwi investors $80 million out of pocket.
Sir Bob is going after a $395,000 debt he claims Blue Chip owes for space leased in his Auckland office tower block, Qantas House, leases for which co-founder Bob Bangerter signed personal guarantees.
The office of Blue Chip boss Mark Bryers on level 20 is now gutted, but earlier this year desperate Blue Chip investors found they could not get into the offices after the elevator access was blocked.
As the Serious Fraud Office and Companies Office continue what are likely to be lengthy investigations into the failed property investment company, Sir Bob is not waiting for an outcome. This week his company Robt Jones Holdings (RJH) will seek summary judgment for an alleged $395,000 debt against Bangerter, and he is determined to follow the process through to bankruptcy.
Bryers, too, is in the firing line as a result of Blue Chip, with one summary judgment entered against him personally and another pending. But so far no one has yet moved to bankrupt Bryers, who is now in Sydney selling property investment.
Yesterday, through the Herald on Sunday, 72-year-old Bangerter pleaded for leniency, saying Blue Chip boss Bryers had duped him and left him holding the burden of the debt.
He has not heard from Bryers and had received no financial help to cover the debt.
Bangerter, who has been bankrupted before, said he had not received an income from Blue Chip since January and that he and his partner Maree Aitkenhead had been "selling assets" to survive.
The couple and their friends and family were owed money from Blue Chip investment properties which had gone wrong.
Their $3 million Remuera home, which they bought late last year and has finance owing on it, was for sale with three agents.
The couple said they would never have bought the house if they had any idea Blue Chip was going to fold.
Bangerter said he was shocked to realise the personal guarantees were still in place.
The first he knew of it was when RJH's lawyers served a document on him last month. He wants the chance to talk to Sir Bob, if only to put his side and clear his name.
But yesterday Sir Bob said the summary judgment would go ahead.
"The only reason we are doing it is to put him [Bangerter] out of action so that will delay him from doing this sort of thing again," Sir Bob said.
"These people, I think what they've done to those old people is appalling."
RJH director Greg Loveridge, whose works from level 21 of Qantas House, one floor above Bryers' old office, said he became suspicious of Blue Chip last year when the company got behind in payments. At one stage a $70,000 rates bill was owing.
"We don't let unpaid bills go unpaid," Loveridge said.
When Blue Chip's financial troubles became public, the company asked RJH to lock off their floors. Earlier this year, a large group of distressed Blue Chip clients appeared in RJH's offices, pleading for access to the offices, Loveridge said.
In March, Blue Chip stopped paying rent on levels 20 and 17. RJH followed "the legal process" and eventually locked out Blue Chip staff.
Bryers sent Loveridge an email from Sydney asking why the doors had been locked and assuring him $100,000 would arrive the next day. The money never arrived.
The lease for space on level 12 was still being paid by ASX-listed Northern Crest Investments, previously Blue Chip Financial Solutions, Loveridge said. Bryers is selling property in Australia under a company called Barkley Walsh, a subsidiary of Northern Crest.
Bangerter denies he is rich and says any wealth he has was accumulated before he met Bryers. He was only paid an annual salary by Blue Chip. He is angry he has been left in the firing line. He signed the personal guarantees for leases on three of the floors six years ago. It suited Bryers to do it that way because of his personal financial situation, Bangerter said.
"At the time that I signed personal guarantees. It never entered my head that Mark Bryers would dump me with it."
Attempts to contact Bryers in Australia were unsuccessful.
The dragon roars
5:00AM Sunday June 08, 2008
By Jane Phare
Sir Bob Jones is trying to bankrupt one of the co-founders of Blue Chip, the company which has left 3000 Kiwi investors $80 million out of pocket.
Sir Bob is going after a $395,000 debt he claims Blue Chip owes for space leased in his Auckland office tower block, Qantas House, leases for which co-founder Bob Bangerter signed personal guarantees.
The office of Blue Chip boss Mark Bryers on level 20 is now gutted, but earlier this year desperate Blue Chip investors found they could not get into the offices after the elevator access was blocked.
As the Serious Fraud Office and Companies Office continue what are likely to be lengthy investigations into the failed property investment company, Sir Bob is not waiting for an outcome. This week his company Robt Jones Holdings (RJH) will seek summary judgment for an alleged $395,000 debt against Bangerter, and he is determined to follow the process through to bankruptcy.
Bryers, too, is in the firing line as a result of Blue Chip, with one summary judgment entered against him personally and another pending. But so far no one has yet moved to bankrupt Bryers, who is now in Sydney selling property investment.
Yesterday, through the Herald on Sunday, 72-year-old Bangerter pleaded for leniency, saying Blue Chip boss Bryers had duped him and left him holding the burden of the debt.
He has not heard from Bryers and had received no financial help to cover the debt.
Bangerter, who has been bankrupted before, said he had not received an income from Blue Chip since January and that he and his partner Maree Aitkenhead had been "selling assets" to survive.
The couple and their friends and family were owed money from Blue Chip investment properties which had gone wrong.
Their $3 million Remuera home, which they bought late last year and has finance owing on it, was for sale with three agents.
The couple said they would never have bought the house if they had any idea Blue Chip was going to fold.
Bangerter said he was shocked to realise the personal guarantees were still in place.
The first he knew of it was when RJH's lawyers served a document on him last month. He wants the chance to talk to Sir Bob, if only to put his side and clear his name.
But yesterday Sir Bob said the summary judgment would go ahead.
"The only reason we are doing it is to put him [Bangerter] out of action so that will delay him from doing this sort of thing again," Sir Bob said.
"These people, I think what they've done to those old people is appalling."
RJH director Greg Loveridge, whose works from level 21 of Qantas House, one floor above Bryers' old office, said he became suspicious of Blue Chip last year when the company got behind in payments. At one stage a $70,000 rates bill was owing.
"We don't let unpaid bills go unpaid," Loveridge said.
When Blue Chip's financial troubles became public, the company asked RJH to lock off their floors. Earlier this year, a large group of distressed Blue Chip clients appeared in RJH's offices, pleading for access to the offices, Loveridge said.
In March, Blue Chip stopped paying rent on levels 20 and 17. RJH followed "the legal process" and eventually locked out Blue Chip staff.
Bryers sent Loveridge an email from Sydney asking why the doors had been locked and assuring him $100,000 would arrive the next day. The money never arrived.
The lease for space on level 12 was still being paid by ASX-listed Northern Crest Investments, previously Blue Chip Financial Solutions, Loveridge said. Bryers is selling property in Australia under a company called Barkley Walsh, a subsidiary of Northern Crest.
Bangerter denies he is rich and says any wealth he has was accumulated before he met Bryers. He was only paid an annual salary by Blue Chip. He is angry he has been left in the firing line. He signed the personal guarantees for leases on three of the floors six years ago. It suited Bryers to do it that way because of his personal financial situation, Bangerter said.
"At the time that I signed personal guarantees. It never entered my head that Mark Bryers would dump me with it."
Attempts to contact Bryers in Australia were unsuccessful.
More bad news for Blue chip
At last the action I and others have been pushing for
Action against Blue Chip solicitors
5:00AM Wednesday July 09, 2008
By Maria Slade
Legal action is being taken against several solicitors over the advice they
gave to burned Blue Chip investors.
Auckland law firm Ellis Law, acting for hundreds of victims of the Blue
Chip property investment collapse, has started proceedings against the
solicitors for negligence.
It is also taking action against several valuers over the valuations they
did on properties sold through the Blue Chip scheme.
At least 24 Blue Chip-related companies are in liquidation and a Serious
Fraud Office investigation is under way, following the highly public
collapse of the scheme in February this year. Blue Chip targeted thousands
of investors who mortgaged their family homes in order to invest in
apartments sourced by the property group.
Many now stand to lose their homes. While in some cases the income from the
rental properties does not cover their mortgages, for others it is far
worse - some have lost deposits on apartments that never materialised, and
hundreds more are being forced to settle on properties they have no hope of
affording.
In many cases Blue Chip salespeople offered the investment as a package
deal - complete with legal adviser, and mortgage through Tasman Mortgages
which Blue Chip owned at the time. Some solicitors handled tranches of Blue
Chip clients.
Ellis Law principal Brian Ellis said there were a number of concerns
surrounding the solicitors' actions, including:
* The size of the deposits investors were required to make.
* The immediate release of investors' deposits.
* The lack of explanation in the documentation about who actually owned the
property and who was developing it.
Ellis said that Section 225 of the Resource Management Act, which allows
for a cooling off period when buying a property off the plans, could be a
useful comeback for some Blue Chip investors. Ellis Law has also written to
the developers of several Auckland apartment complexes - including The
Stadium on Beach Road, still under construction, and the newly completed
Barclay on Albert Street - requesting that Blue Chip investors' contracts
be cancelled and their deposits returned.
The investors put deposits on the apartments but had agreements with Blue
Chip that they personally would never have to own the properties. They have
been left holding sale and purchase agreements which many are in no
position to complete.
Ellis said so far all the developers were "vigorously defending" their
positions, and court action was likely.
At last the action I and others have been pushing for
Action against Blue Chip solicitors
5:00AM Wednesday July 09, 2008
By Maria Slade
Legal action is being taken against several solicitors over the advice they
gave to burned Blue Chip investors.
Auckland law firm Ellis Law, acting for hundreds of victims of the Blue
Chip property investment collapse, has started proceedings against the
solicitors for negligence.
It is also taking action against several valuers over the valuations they
did on properties sold through the Blue Chip scheme.
At least 24 Blue Chip-related companies are in liquidation and a Serious
Fraud Office investigation is under way, following the highly public
collapse of the scheme in February this year. Blue Chip targeted thousands
of investors who mortgaged their family homes in order to invest in
apartments sourced by the property group.
Many now stand to lose their homes. While in some cases the income from the
rental properties does not cover their mortgages, for others it is far
worse - some have lost deposits on apartments that never materialised, and
hundreds more are being forced to settle on properties they have no hope of
affording.
In many cases Blue Chip salespeople offered the investment as a package
deal - complete with legal adviser, and mortgage through Tasman Mortgages
which Blue Chip owned at the time. Some solicitors handled tranches of Blue
Chip clients.
Ellis Law principal Brian Ellis said there were a number of concerns
surrounding the solicitors' actions, including:
* The size of the deposits investors were required to make.
* The immediate release of investors' deposits.
* The lack of explanation in the documentation about who actually owned the
property and who was developing it.
Ellis said that Section 225 of the Resource Management Act, which allows
for a cooling off period when buying a property off the plans, could be a
useful comeback for some Blue Chip investors. Ellis Law has also written to
the developers of several Auckland apartment complexes - including The
Stadium on Beach Road, still under construction, and the newly completed
Barclay on Albert Street - requesting that Blue Chip investors' contracts
be cancelled and their deposits returned.
The investors put deposits on the apartments but had agreements with Blue
Chip that they personally would never have to own the properties. They have
been left holding sale and purchase agreements which many are in no
position to complete.
Ellis said so far all the developers were "vigorously defending" their
positions, and court action was likely.
One by one
Another Blue Chip domino falls over
By GREG NINNESS - Sunday Star Times | Sunday, 13 July 2008
Beleaguered Blue Chip co-founder Mark Bryers is likely to lose another jewel from his tarnished crown.
The property on which he intended to build a swank international resort hotel next to the Gulf Harbour golf course is now in the hands of its mortgagee and will probably be sold.
Bryers had pledged expected profits from the hotel development as security for a $38.1 million debt created by the restructuring of the listed Blue Chip group last September.
Although resource consents for the resort have been granted and architects' plans drawn up, the site is still vacant land with a first mortgage to FP Holdings (formerly Vestar Wealth Management) and a second mortgage to Capital + Merchant Finance, both of which are in receivership.
Rod Pardington of Deloitte, who is FP Holdings' receiver, was not available to comment on his plans for the property.
Tim Downes, one of the receivers for Capital + Merchant, said Bryers no longer had any say in what was going on.
He said the plan was to sell the site and new owners would be able to proceed with the resort as Bryers had planned, or do whatever else they wanted with it.
The adjacent golf course and country club, which Bryers also owns, is also in the process of being sold by mortgagee sale.
Like the golf course, the resort site was owned by Bryers personally but it played a central role in the Blue Chip scandal which has left more than 2000 mainly mum and dad investors owed more than $84m, prompting a Serious Fraud Office investigation.
Profits Bryers estimated he would make from developing the hotel, to be called the Matapia Resort & Spa, were offered as security for a complicated arrangement entered into by ASX-listed Blue Chip Financial Solutions last year.
Under the arrangement, the New Zealand operations of the company were sold into a franchise structure in which Bryers claimed he had no interest.
The deal left the newly created franchise with most of Blue Chip's liabilities, described as "legacy issues", which included $38m of investor deposits awaiting property delivery.
Blue Chip balanced its books by recording a $38m debt owed to it by the franchise.
To get the deal past Blue Chip's shareholders, Bryers sweetened the pie by underwriting the debt with an unregistered mortgage over Matapia Resort's future development margins.
However, at the time the deal was done it was apparent that Blue Chip was already suffering cash flow problems.
The new structure sucked money out of the New Zealand franchises and hastened their collapse into liquidation this year.
The ASX-listed company has since changed its name to Northern Crest Investments, and is currently suspended from trading on the ASX. It is operating through a newly created subsidiary called Barkley Walsh, which appears to be based on the now discredited model previously used by Blue Chip in this country.
Another Blue Chip domino falls over
By GREG NINNESS - Sunday Star Times | Sunday, 13 July 2008
Beleaguered Blue Chip co-founder Mark Bryers is likely to lose another jewel from his tarnished crown.
The property on which he intended to build a swank international resort hotel next to the Gulf Harbour golf course is now in the hands of its mortgagee and will probably be sold.
Bryers had pledged expected profits from the hotel development as security for a $38.1 million debt created by the restructuring of the listed Blue Chip group last September.
Although resource consents for the resort have been granted and architects' plans drawn up, the site is still vacant land with a first mortgage to FP Holdings (formerly Vestar Wealth Management) and a second mortgage to Capital + Merchant Finance, both of which are in receivership.
Rod Pardington of Deloitte, who is FP Holdings' receiver, was not available to comment on his plans for the property.
Tim Downes, one of the receivers for Capital + Merchant, said Bryers no longer had any say in what was going on.
He said the plan was to sell the site and new owners would be able to proceed with the resort as Bryers had planned, or do whatever else they wanted with it.
The adjacent golf course and country club, which Bryers also owns, is also in the process of being sold by mortgagee sale.
Like the golf course, the resort site was owned by Bryers personally but it played a central role in the Blue Chip scandal which has left more than 2000 mainly mum and dad investors owed more than $84m, prompting a Serious Fraud Office investigation.
Profits Bryers estimated he would make from developing the hotel, to be called the Matapia Resort & Spa, were offered as security for a complicated arrangement entered into by ASX-listed Blue Chip Financial Solutions last year.
Under the arrangement, the New Zealand operations of the company were sold into a franchise structure in which Bryers claimed he had no interest.
The deal left the newly created franchise with most of Blue Chip's liabilities, described as "legacy issues", which included $38m of investor deposits awaiting property delivery.
Blue Chip balanced its books by recording a $38m debt owed to it by the franchise.
To get the deal past Blue Chip's shareholders, Bryers sweetened the pie by underwriting the debt with an unregistered mortgage over Matapia Resort's future development margins.
However, at the time the deal was done it was apparent that Blue Chip was already suffering cash flow problems.
The new structure sucked money out of the New Zealand franchises and hastened their collapse into liquidation this year.
The ASX-listed company has since changed its name to Northern Crest Investments, and is currently suspended from trading on the ASX. It is operating through a newly created subsidiary called Barkley Walsh, which appears to be based on the now discredited model previously used by Blue Chip in this country.
The best way to seal with these criminals is to hold a hold to exploit their balls. They will then give all your money back.
progress
go have a look at www.property.com ,this sagga has progressed much further than whats posted here.
cheers
go have a look at www.property.com ,this sagga has progressed much further than whats posted here.
cheers
Let justice be done
Blue Chip investors sue their lawyers
By JENNI MCMANUS - BusinessDay.co.nz | Wednesday, 27 August 2008
DISGRUNTLED: Out-of-pocket Blue Chip investors are suing their Blue Chip-recommended lawyers for breach of duty over the handling of millions of dollars worth of apartment purchases.
Eight out-of-pocket investors in bankrupt property company Blue Chip are suing their Blue Chip-recommended lawyers for breach of duty for their handling of millions of dollars worth of apartment purchases due to settle within weeks.
They say lawyers Jonathan Mathias, Zeljan Unkovich and law firm Foster Milroy & Turketo, who habitually did Blue Chip work, were recommended to investors for legal advice when buying apartments in the Barclay development in downtown Auckland about two years ago.
The investors claim they were dissuaded from using their own lawyers by Blue Chip, who they say told them its property schemes were complex and their own lawyers might not understand how they worked.
But Mathias, Unkovich and Foster Milroy & Turketo regularly did Blue Chip-related work and knew how the schemes operated, the investors say they were told. Some say Blue Chip threatened not to pay their legal fees unless they used lawyers Blue Chip recommended. Specifically, the plaintiffs allege the lawyers failed to advise them of the implications of the transactions they were signing or to give them any advice about the documentation
The defendants are expected to vigorously defend the claims and deny the allegations.
The claim is part of the first significant lawsuit against Blue Chip. Other defendants have been named as Greenstone Barclay Trustees, GE Custodians (a lender), Tasman Mortgages and Executive Mortgages (mortgage brokers) and Blue Chip associate Bribanc (now know as Vault Realty).
Fraud claims have been brought against Tasman and Executive, where it's alleged one or both fraudulently altered the loan documentation for one investor whose income was misstated, and mortgages were obtained from GE Custodians on the basis of fraudulent conduct.
Other claims and issues include breaches of the Securities and Fair Trading Acts, cancellation of the apartment sale and purchase agreements and unconscionable contracts.
The trial is not expected to be scheduled until next year. Meanwhile a curtain-raiser is set down for hearing in the High Court at Auckland on 2 September where the investors' lawyers, Paul Dale and Daniel Grove, are seeking an injunction to prevent Greenstone, the developers of the Barclay apartment building in downtown Auckland, from forcing the investors to settle on multi-million-dollar apartment purchases they say they'd been told they'd never have to complete.
If they win, settlement will be delayed until after the full trial.
About two years ago, the investors signed sale and purchase agreements for their Barclay apartments and paid deposits, but say they did so on the basis that Blue Chip, which was promoting and selling the properties, had guaranteed they would never have to settle.
Instead, they were told Blue Chip itself would buy the apartments from the investors when they were completed. In the meantime, investors were paid 16% interest on their deposits while the apartments were being built - payments that dried up about November last year when Blue Chip began to run seriously short of cash.
Blue Chip collapsed into liquidation in February 2008. Nevertheless, Dale and Grove argue the investors are entitled to rely on the claims and representations made by the company and its agents and employees when investors were hooked into the deals about two years ago.
Most investors say they could not settle with Greenstone even if they wanted to. For example, Neil and Michelle Hickman, plaintiffs in the case, signed agreements on apartments worth nearly $10 million on the basis that Blue Chip would buy them out before settlement.
The Hickmans, who emigrated to New Zealand from Britain and wanted to invest their $1 million savings in a NZ business for two years, were persuaded to join Blue Chip's scheme, partly on the basis of being told by Blue Chip's agents and financial advisers that the company was ``100% safe'', had never failed any of its investors, was too big to fail and had ``millions in the bank and huge assets''.
The plaintiffs allege all this was untrue and the subsequent deals they signed were agreed on the basis of misrepresentation.
Described by Dale as naive and unsophisticated investors, the Hickmans also relied on a valuation from Blue Chip associate Bribanc Real Estate that they did not even see. Dale is arguing that, as with several plaintiffs' properties, their apartment was over-valued.
At next week's injunction hearing, all the plaintiffs need prove is that they can mount a credible argument against the developers and Blue Chip. The matter is urgent as the apartments are due for completion within weeks and Greenstone is pressing for the investors to settle.
__________________
OllyN [email protected]
Independent Property Consultant
Residential and Commercial Solutions
Blue Chip investors sue their lawyers
By JENNI MCMANUS - BusinessDay.co.nz | Wednesday, 27 August 2008
DISGRUNTLED: Out-of-pocket Blue Chip investors are suing their Blue Chip-recommended lawyers for breach of duty over the handling of millions of dollars worth of apartment purchases.
Eight out-of-pocket investors in bankrupt property company Blue Chip are suing their Blue Chip-recommended lawyers for breach of duty for their handling of millions of dollars worth of apartment purchases due to settle within weeks.
They say lawyers Jonathan Mathias, Zeljan Unkovich and law firm Foster Milroy & Turketo, who habitually did Blue Chip work, were recommended to investors for legal advice when buying apartments in the Barclay development in downtown Auckland about two years ago.
The investors claim they were dissuaded from using their own lawyers by Blue Chip, who they say told them its property schemes were complex and their own lawyers might not understand how they worked.
But Mathias, Unkovich and Foster Milroy & Turketo regularly did Blue Chip-related work and knew how the schemes operated, the investors say they were told. Some say Blue Chip threatened not to pay their legal fees unless they used lawyers Blue Chip recommended. Specifically, the plaintiffs allege the lawyers failed to advise them of the implications of the transactions they were signing or to give them any advice about the documentation
The defendants are expected to vigorously defend the claims and deny the allegations.
The claim is part of the first significant lawsuit against Blue Chip. Other defendants have been named as Greenstone Barclay Trustees, GE Custodians (a lender), Tasman Mortgages and Executive Mortgages (mortgage brokers) and Blue Chip associate Bribanc (now know as Vault Realty).
Fraud claims have been brought against Tasman and Executive, where it's alleged one or both fraudulently altered the loan documentation for one investor whose income was misstated, and mortgages were obtained from GE Custodians on the basis of fraudulent conduct.
Other claims and issues include breaches of the Securities and Fair Trading Acts, cancellation of the apartment sale and purchase agreements and unconscionable contracts.
The trial is not expected to be scheduled until next year. Meanwhile a curtain-raiser is set down for hearing in the High Court at Auckland on 2 September where the investors' lawyers, Paul Dale and Daniel Grove, are seeking an injunction to prevent Greenstone, the developers of the Barclay apartment building in downtown Auckland, from forcing the investors to settle on multi-million-dollar apartment purchases they say they'd been told they'd never have to complete.
If they win, settlement will be delayed until after the full trial.
About two years ago, the investors signed sale and purchase agreements for their Barclay apartments and paid deposits, but say they did so on the basis that Blue Chip, which was promoting and selling the properties, had guaranteed they would never have to settle.
Instead, they were told Blue Chip itself would buy the apartments from the investors when they were completed. In the meantime, investors were paid 16% interest on their deposits while the apartments were being built - payments that dried up about November last year when Blue Chip began to run seriously short of cash.
Blue Chip collapsed into liquidation in February 2008. Nevertheless, Dale and Grove argue the investors are entitled to rely on the claims and representations made by the company and its agents and employees when investors were hooked into the deals about two years ago.
Most investors say they could not settle with Greenstone even if they wanted to. For example, Neil and Michelle Hickman, plaintiffs in the case, signed agreements on apartments worth nearly $10 million on the basis that Blue Chip would buy them out before settlement.
The Hickmans, who emigrated to New Zealand from Britain and wanted to invest their $1 million savings in a NZ business for two years, were persuaded to join Blue Chip's scheme, partly on the basis of being told by Blue Chip's agents and financial advisers that the company was ``100% safe'', had never failed any of its investors, was too big to fail and had ``millions in the bank and huge assets''.
The plaintiffs allege all this was untrue and the subsequent deals they signed were agreed on the basis of misrepresentation.
Described by Dale as naive and unsophisticated investors, the Hickmans also relied on a valuation from Blue Chip associate Bribanc Real Estate that they did not even see. Dale is arguing that, as with several plaintiffs' properties, their apartment was over-valued.
At next week's injunction hearing, all the plaintiffs need prove is that they can mount a credible argument against the developers and Blue Chip. The matter is urgent as the apartments are due for completion within weeks and Greenstone is pressing for the investors to settle.
__________________
OllyN [email protected]
Independent Property Consultant
Residential and Commercial Solutions
Thick and fast
Update 2.9.08
Those of you affected by the Blue Chip fiasco will take much heart from this latest development. It has been a long time since I first uncovered the suggestion of fraud with Blue Chip back in October last year.
Since then, month in and month out, I have continued unlocking this complicated mess supplying information to the Government, The SFO, The Commerce Commission, the Companies Office, the Securities Commission, the ASX, as well as the barristers and their colleagues who I recommended and have now succeeded so well to date.
As TVone reported ( not shown below) I too uncovered documents which showed that Blue Chip investors' true financial positions were altered so that they would qualify for loans and this information was also supplied to the authorities.
Then here was the cloak and dagger stuff where I secured a large pile of stolen documents, all of which were also handed into the SFO.
Mark Bryers was a very slick operator indeed. In the several face to face conversations I had with him early on, he was so convincing that he almost fooled me totally. Likewise his CEO's.
But his mask has now been ripped away and the truth is slowly emerging.
Thanks to all of you who assisted so far and are continuing to assist.
Justice has been a long time coming.
Ollipop
Blue Chip hope sparked by frozen funds
TVone News
Sept 2, 2008 6:37 PM
Hundreds of Blue Chip investors across New Zealand have been given fresh hope that they might be able to recover millions of dollars worth of deposits for apartments they never wanted to buy.
The High Court has frozen funds in solicitors trust accounts until a full hearing takes place later this year - but that has put five Auckland apartment projects at risk.
The Hickman family, who left Britain two years ago, invested $1 million as deposits on 18 apartments, in three separate projects, to satisfy immigration requirements.
"We were looking for a return on our capital part of our immigration purposes," says Neil Hickman, a Blue Chip investor.
Blue Chip was meant to pay interest on the deposits, and then buy the apartments back before they were completed.
But that did not happen.
"Certainly on the affidavit evidence we have filed to date, there has been fraud. We have produced examples of altered loan documents," says Paul Dale the investors' Barrister.
The High Court has now frozen deposits worth millions until a full hearing later this year.
But that means the Greenstone Group can not use that money to settle completed apartment projects like The Barclay.
"If we were to succeed, and 49 of these agreements get cancelled, and there are other developments in the same boat, then it's not good for anybody, it's a disaster," says Dale.
Lawyers are also trying to track down Blue Chip's founder, Mark Bryers, to serve him with a bankruptcy notice.
"And now he's off to Australia to do the same to people over there, I just - unbelievable," says Blue Chip investor Michelle Hickman.
Dale says he has got powerful evidence of a profit sharing agreement between Greenstone and Blue Chip which would have seen money flow to Mark Bryers when apartment projects like this were completed.
But the Greenstone group says it had a normal commercial arrangement with Blue Chip, and it is now putting up its own money to help investors buy apartments they don't want - and can't afford.
Update 2.9.08
Those of you affected by the Blue Chip fiasco will take much heart from this latest development. It has been a long time since I first uncovered the suggestion of fraud with Blue Chip back in October last year.
Since then, month in and month out, I have continued unlocking this complicated mess supplying information to the Government, The SFO, The Commerce Commission, the Companies Office, the Securities Commission, the ASX, as well as the barristers and their colleagues who I recommended and have now succeeded so well to date.
As TVone reported ( not shown below) I too uncovered documents which showed that Blue Chip investors' true financial positions were altered so that they would qualify for loans and this information was also supplied to the authorities.
Then here was the cloak and dagger stuff where I secured a large pile of stolen documents, all of which were also handed into the SFO.
Mark Bryers was a very slick operator indeed. In the several face to face conversations I had with him early on, he was so convincing that he almost fooled me totally. Likewise his CEO's.
But his mask has now been ripped away and the truth is slowly emerging.
Thanks to all of you who assisted so far and are continuing to assist.
Justice has been a long time coming.
Ollipop
Blue Chip hope sparked by frozen funds
TVone News
Sept 2, 2008 6:37 PM
Hundreds of Blue Chip investors across New Zealand have been given fresh hope that they might be able to recover millions of dollars worth of deposits for apartments they never wanted to buy.
The High Court has frozen funds in solicitors trust accounts until a full hearing takes place later this year - but that has put five Auckland apartment projects at risk.
The Hickman family, who left Britain two years ago, invested $1 million as deposits on 18 apartments, in three separate projects, to satisfy immigration requirements.
"We were looking for a return on our capital part of our immigration purposes," says Neil Hickman, a Blue Chip investor.
Blue Chip was meant to pay interest on the deposits, and then buy the apartments back before they were completed.
But that did not happen.
"Certainly on the affidavit evidence we have filed to date, there has been fraud. We have produced examples of altered loan documents," says Paul Dale the investors' Barrister.
The High Court has now frozen deposits worth millions until a full hearing later this year.
But that means the Greenstone Group can not use that money to settle completed apartment projects like The Barclay.
"If we were to succeed, and 49 of these agreements get cancelled, and there are other developments in the same boat, then it's not good for anybody, it's a disaster," says Dale.
Lawyers are also trying to track down Blue Chip's founder, Mark Bryers, to serve him with a bankruptcy notice.
"And now he's off to Australia to do the same to people over there, I just - unbelievable," says Blue Chip investor Michelle Hickman.
Dale says he has got powerful evidence of a profit sharing agreement between Greenstone and Blue Chip which would have seen money flow to Mark Bryers when apartment projects like this were completed.
But the Greenstone group says it had a normal commercial arrangement with Blue Chip, and it is now putting up its own money to help investors buy apartments they don't want - and can't afford.
Mark Bryers in Australia
Hello all,
This may have been posted in your forum already but I will do it again for any newbies - Mark bryers has started a business in Aussie after leaving NZ.
You may know Mark bryers from the Blue Chip company.
Additionally news from NZ with the latest Feb 09 here:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10558032
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10557934
Hello all,
This may have been posted in your forum already but I will do it again for any newbies - Mark bryers has started a business in Aussie after leaving NZ.
You may know Mark bryers from the Blue Chip company.
Additionally news from NZ with the latest Feb 09 here:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10558032
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10557934
Chutzpah
Bryers charged in NZ,
chasing cash in Aussie
By DENISE McNABB
Last updated 00:07 05/03/2009
BLUE CHIP BOSS: Mark Bryers says his new Australian company is more robust and will return to a profitable trading position despite the impact of the global recesssion.
Relevant offers
Blue Chip co-founder Mark Bryers is courting the Australian sharemarket while facing court charges in New Zealand.
On the day Mr Bryers was supposed to be in court in Auckland on one charge, with 100 criminal charges pending here, he was laying out plans to get one of his companies back on the Australian sharemarket.
At least 3000 Kiwi investors are fighting to recover millions of dollars possibly as much as $70 million from Blue Chip, which collapsed a year ago. The flawed financial services company and its raft of subsidiaries are still being unravelled by liquidators.
Some investors are fighting just to keep a roof over their heads as legal action continues over their lost investments. In stark contrast, Mr Bryers lives in a luxury waterfront apartment in downtown Sydney.
Late last week, he made an extraordinary list of commitments to the Australian Securities Exchange in anticipation of plans to relist Northern Crest Investments, formerly Blue Chip Financial Services, by the end of the month in Australia.
He said the company had completed arrangements to raise interim finance totalling A$3m and would later seek money from shareholders. His plan also includes taking any remnants of the business out of New Zealand to Australia.
ASX, the Australian sharemarket company, suspended Northern Crest from trading in August last year for failing to pay annual listing fees for the year to this June.
By then New Zealand's Blue Chip franchise businesses, the bulk of the company's operations, had collapsed. Yet Mr Bryers has now told the ASX that Northern Crest is returning to profit.
The three-page "notice of intent business update" was filed at the ASX last Friday. That was the day Mr Bryers faced court charges in Auckland relating to management by his company Swordfish Lodge Management, in which investors have lost more than $1m. Mr Bryers was seen in Auckland, but did not appear in court.
The charges were deferred until March 27, but Mr Bryers is expected to face least 100 more criminal charges from the New Zealand Companies Office for breaches of the Companies Act.
None of this is in the "business update" to the ASX. There was also no financial detail.
In the notice, Mr Bryers says Northern Crest's unnamed board has been working diligently to finalise its position in New Zealand. It was investigating how it could assist the former New Zealand franchise's clients who had suffered losses.
It planned a review of operations to come up with a business model that avoided the problems suffered by the group in the past.
Mr Bryers says the new company is more robust and will return to a profitable trading position despite the impact of the global recession.
Bryers charged in NZ,
chasing cash in Aussie
By DENISE McNABB
Last updated 00:07 05/03/2009
BLUE CHIP BOSS: Mark Bryers says his new Australian company is more robust and will return to a profitable trading position despite the impact of the global recesssion.
Relevant offers
Blue Chip co-founder Mark Bryers is courting the Australian sharemarket while facing court charges in New Zealand.
On the day Mr Bryers was supposed to be in court in Auckland on one charge, with 100 criminal charges pending here, he was laying out plans to get one of his companies back on the Australian sharemarket.
At least 3000 Kiwi investors are fighting to recover millions of dollars possibly as much as $70 million from Blue Chip, which collapsed a year ago. The flawed financial services company and its raft of subsidiaries are still being unravelled by liquidators.
Some investors are fighting just to keep a roof over their heads as legal action continues over their lost investments. In stark contrast, Mr Bryers lives in a luxury waterfront apartment in downtown Sydney.
Late last week, he made an extraordinary list of commitments to the Australian Securities Exchange in anticipation of plans to relist Northern Crest Investments, formerly Blue Chip Financial Services, by the end of the month in Australia.
He said the company had completed arrangements to raise interim finance totalling A$3m and would later seek money from shareholders. His plan also includes taking any remnants of the business out of New Zealand to Australia.
ASX, the Australian sharemarket company, suspended Northern Crest from trading in August last year for failing to pay annual listing fees for the year to this June.
By then New Zealand's Blue Chip franchise businesses, the bulk of the company's operations, had collapsed. Yet Mr Bryers has now told the ASX that Northern Crest is returning to profit.
The three-page "notice of intent business update" was filed at the ASX last Friday. That was the day Mr Bryers faced court charges in Auckland relating to management by his company Swordfish Lodge Management, in which investors have lost more than $1m. Mr Bryers was seen in Auckland, but did not appear in court.
The charges were deferred until March 27, but Mr Bryers is expected to face least 100 more criminal charges from the New Zealand Companies Office for breaches of the Companies Act.
None of this is in the "business update" to the ASX. There was also no financial detail.
In the notice, Mr Bryers says Northern Crest's unnamed board has been working diligently to finalise its position in New Zealand. It was investigating how it could assist the former New Zealand franchise's clients who had suffered losses.
It planned a review of operations to come up with a business model that avoided the problems suffered by the group in the past.
Mr Bryers says the new company is more robust and will return to a profitable trading position despite the impact of the global recession.
Bryers charged in NZ, chasing cash in Aussie
Warning on Mark Bryers from Blue Chip
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/1998706/Bryers-charged-in-NZ-chasing-cash-in-Aussie
Warning on Mark Bryers from Blue Chip
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/1998706/Bryers-charged-in-NZ-chasing-cash-in-Aussie
Another shoe drops
Blue Chip-linked director in court
By ANDREW JANES - BusinessDay
Last updated 12:28 17/04/2009
An ex-director of one of the companies in the Blue Chip group - Neil Bell – appeared in the Auckland District Court this morning.
Mr Bell, along with another former director of one of the Blue Chip companies, Rikki Flowerday, and co-founder of Blue Chip Robert Bangerter face charges under the Companies Act for allegedly failing to keep adequate books and records.
Neither Mr Flowerday nor Mr Bangerter was present in court this morning. The cases against Mr Flowerday and Mr Bangerter were adjourned until May 8 while Mr Bell will be back in court for a status hearing on June 19.
Investment company Blue Chip collapsed in February 2008 owing 2000 investors around $80 million. Its founder, Mark Bryers, is facing around 60 charges under the Companies Act and is next due in court on May 29
Blue Chip-linked director in court
By ANDREW JANES - BusinessDay
Last updated 12:28 17/04/2009
An ex-director of one of the companies in the Blue Chip group - Neil Bell – appeared in the Auckland District Court this morning.
Mr Bell, along with another former director of one of the Blue Chip companies, Rikki Flowerday, and co-founder of Blue Chip Robert Bangerter face charges under the Companies Act for allegedly failing to keep adequate books and records.
Neither Mr Flowerday nor Mr Bangerter was present in court this morning. The cases against Mr Flowerday and Mr Bangerter were adjourned until May 8 while Mr Bell will be back in court for a status hearing on June 19.
Investment company Blue Chip collapsed in February 2008 owing 2000 investors around $80 million. Its founder, Mark Bryers, is facing around 60 charges under the Companies Act and is next due in court on May 29
Auditors report Northern Crest
Would you invest in this company?
The last paragraph of the auditors report on Northern Crest says it all. They effectively state that Northern Crest's annual report is nothing less than a combination of spin and fairy tales suitable only for young children and the illiterate. The wonder is that Spicers did the report at all. ( emphasis mine)
"In respect of evidence to support the matters described above we have not obtained the information and
explanations that we have required. In other respects proper accounting records have been kept by the Company
as far as appears from our examination of those records.
Because of the potential effect of the limitations in the evidence available to us in respect of; the valuation and
existence of trade, intercompany and other receivables, the valuation and completeness of related party balances
and the use of the going concern assumption described above, we are unable to form an opinion as to whether the
financial report on pages 14 to 86;
• complies with generally accepted accounting practice in New Zealand; and
• gives a true and fair view of the financial position of the Company and Group as at 31 March 2008 and the
results of their operations and cash flows for the period ended on that date.
Our audit was completed on 30 April 2009 and our qualified opinion is expressed as at that date."
BD0 SPICERS AUCKLAND
AUCKLAND
Would you invest in this company?
The last paragraph of the auditors report on Northern Crest says it all. They effectively state that Northern Crest's annual report is nothing less than a combination of spin and fairy tales suitable only for young children and the illiterate. The wonder is that Spicers did the report at all. ( emphasis mine)
"In respect of evidence to support the matters described above we have not obtained the information and
explanations that we have required. In other respects proper accounting records have been kept by the Company
as far as appears from our examination of those records.
Because of the potential effect of the limitations in the evidence available to us in respect of; the valuation and
existence of trade, intercompany and other receivables, the valuation and completeness of related party balances
and the use of the going concern assumption described above, we are unable to form an opinion as to whether the
financial report on pages 14 to 86;
• complies with generally accepted accounting practice in New Zealand; and
• gives a true and fair view of the financial position of the Company and Group as at 31 March 2008 and the
results of their operations and cash flows for the period ended on that date.
Our audit was completed on 30 April 2009 and our qualified opinion is expressed as at that date."
BD0 SPICERS AUCKLAND
AUCKLAND
Important message for Marc Wilson
Would somebody urgently communicate to the Marc Wilson (high lighted in the article below) and advise him of the nest of vipers he is getting into.
Blue Chip boss nets $25m share windfall
4:00AM Sunday May 17, 2009
By Jane Phare
Blue Chip co-founder Mark Bryers earned more than $25 million from selling shares in one of his companies before the group collapsed last year, leaving some investors facing the loss of their homes.
Bryers' annual accounts filed this month show his company, Northern Crest Investments (formerly Blue Chip Financial Solutions), was deeply in debt and losing millions of dollars when he offloaded the shares that he beneficially owned.
In February last year, after 19 Blue Chip-related companies went into liquidation leaving thousands of investors $80m out of pocket, Bryers indicated $25m might become available from his own property developments.
He has kept up that line with Blue Chip liquidator Jeff Meltzer over the past year but there has been no sign of any money.
The 2007-2008 accounts, filed with the ASX (Australian Securities Commission), show that while Meltzer and his team immersed themselves in Blue Chip documents, Northern Crest Investments ended its financial year in debt, with losses of $125.4m over the 15 months ending March 31 last year.
Bryers offloaded more than 15 million Northern Crest shares between February and July 2007, earning him $25.84m.
He used another 13.7 million shares as security for a loan with Australian stockbroking firm Opes Prime, which went into liquidation in March this year.
Its main banker, ANZ (owed $827m by Opes) took control of those shares, the ownership of which Bryers is now disputing, according to the Northern Crest report.
The report does not specify Bryers' income from all his share dividends but it states he is "a major beneficial shareholder" and received dividends during the 15 months.
Bryers earned a salary of $486,000 a year as the company's executive director before he resigned in February 2007. He was reappointed in October that year. He was paid a further $288,500 in consulting fees in the 14 months to March last year.
This February Bryers announced plans to relist Northern Crest on the ASX after being suspended for a year.
That caused the Companies Office to start trying to liquidate Northern Crest on the basis it was insolvent, an action Bryers will fight in court next month.
Bryers also faces 60 charges under the Companies Act and this month Blue Chip's liquidators will apply to the High Court to take legal action against key Blue Chip executives and directors, including Bryers.
He also faces several bankruptcy proceedings, but he continues to live in a luxury apartment in Sydney and last month holidayed at the Hilton Hotel in Denarau Island, Fiji.
Despite Northern Crest's debt, Bryers' report to shareholders says the company is expecting to make a pre-tax profit of $4.13m next year. And last week Bryers announced the appointment of Australian accountant Marc Wilson as an independent director and chairman of the board.
A release on the ASX website described Wilson as a senior director of WWP Accounting Group, a Canberra-based accountancy and business services firm.
The release said he served on several existing boards, including one company which provides consultancy and recruitment services for the Australian Government.
The announcement led one former Blue Chip executive to speculate that Wilson "hasn't heard of Mark Bryers before".
It was "a joke" that with "serious criminal charges" against Bryers, he could still persuade people to work for him, the executive said.
Bryers has gone to some lengths to reinvent himself in Australia. His personal website in Australia makes no mention of Blue Chip, describing him only as the owner and manager of Northern Crest Investments. He lists his specialties as property investment, financial planning, merchant banking and accounting.
Last month the final part of the Blue Chip group went into voluntary liquidation, owing $20m in unpaid tax. Blue Chip Financial Solutions (NZ)'s sole shareholder is Northern Crest Investments. It is believed to be a holding company for more than 80 subsidiary companies, with no assets.
Auckland barrister Paul Dale, acting for Blue Chip investors in a six-week High Court trial, said there had been no offer of any kind from Bryers.
Worse, he believed that Bryers stood to gain in underwriter's fees from three Auckland developments he sold - Icon in Emily Place, the Turner Waverley apartments and St Martin's Lane on Symonds St. Those fees could be up to $15m for each development, said.
Dale also suspected the Northern Crest share money would be "in an offshore account by now". The only way to find out where the money had gone, including the $25m share money, was to get Bryers in the witness box and ask him. "The liquidator has the power to do that under the Companies Act. I don't know why that hasn't been done."
Bryers hung up when the Herald on Sunday called on Friday and did not respond to emailed questions. Liquidator Jeff Meltzer could not be reached.
Would somebody urgently communicate to the Marc Wilson (high lighted in the article below) and advise him of the nest of vipers he is getting into.
Blue Chip boss nets $25m share windfall
4:00AM Sunday May 17, 2009
By Jane Phare
Blue Chip co-founder Mark Bryers earned more than $25 million from selling shares in one of his companies before the group collapsed last year, leaving some investors facing the loss of their homes.
Bryers' annual accounts filed this month show his company, Northern Crest Investments (formerly Blue Chip Financial Solutions), was deeply in debt and losing millions of dollars when he offloaded the shares that he beneficially owned.
In February last year, after 19 Blue Chip-related companies went into liquidation leaving thousands of investors $80m out of pocket, Bryers indicated $25m might become available from his own property developments.
He has kept up that line with Blue Chip liquidator Jeff Meltzer over the past year but there has been no sign of any money.
The 2007-2008 accounts, filed with the ASX (Australian Securities Commission), show that while Meltzer and his team immersed themselves in Blue Chip documents, Northern Crest Investments ended its financial year in debt, with losses of $125.4m over the 15 months ending March 31 last year.
Bryers offloaded more than 15 million Northern Crest shares between February and July 2007, earning him $25.84m.
He used another 13.7 million shares as security for a loan with Australian stockbroking firm Opes Prime, which went into liquidation in March this year.
Its main banker, ANZ (owed $827m by Opes) took control of those shares, the ownership of which Bryers is now disputing, according to the Northern Crest report.
The report does not specify Bryers' income from all his share dividends but it states he is "a major beneficial shareholder" and received dividends during the 15 months.
Bryers earned a salary of $486,000 a year as the company's executive director before he resigned in February 2007. He was reappointed in October that year. He was paid a further $288,500 in consulting fees in the 14 months to March last year.
This February Bryers announced plans to relist Northern Crest on the ASX after being suspended for a year.
That caused the Companies Office to start trying to liquidate Northern Crest on the basis it was insolvent, an action Bryers will fight in court next month.
Bryers also faces 60 charges under the Companies Act and this month Blue Chip's liquidators will apply to the High Court to take legal action against key Blue Chip executives and directors, including Bryers.
He also faces several bankruptcy proceedings, but he continues to live in a luxury apartment in Sydney and last month holidayed at the Hilton Hotel in Denarau Island, Fiji.
Despite Northern Crest's debt, Bryers' report to shareholders says the company is expecting to make a pre-tax profit of $4.13m next year. And last week Bryers announced the appointment of Australian accountant Marc Wilson as an independent director and chairman of the board.
A release on the ASX website described Wilson as a senior director of WWP Accounting Group, a Canberra-based accountancy and business services firm.
The release said he served on several existing boards, including one company which provides consultancy and recruitment services for the Australian Government.
The announcement led one former Blue Chip executive to speculate that Wilson "hasn't heard of Mark Bryers before".
It was "a joke" that with "serious criminal charges" against Bryers, he could still persuade people to work for him, the executive said.
Bryers has gone to some lengths to reinvent himself in Australia. His personal website in Australia makes no mention of Blue Chip, describing him only as the owner and manager of Northern Crest Investments. He lists his specialties as property investment, financial planning, merchant banking and accounting.
Last month the final part of the Blue Chip group went into voluntary liquidation, owing $20m in unpaid tax. Blue Chip Financial Solutions (NZ)'s sole shareholder is Northern Crest Investments. It is believed to be a holding company for more than 80 subsidiary companies, with no assets.
Auckland barrister Paul Dale, acting for Blue Chip investors in a six-week High Court trial, said there had been no offer of any kind from Bryers.
Worse, he believed that Bryers stood to gain in underwriter's fees from three Auckland developments he sold - Icon in Emily Place, the Turner Waverley apartments and St Martin's Lane on Symonds St. Those fees could be up to $15m for each development, said.
Dale also suspected the Northern Crest share money would be "in an offshore account by now". The only way to find out where the money had gone, including the $25m share money, was to get Bryers in the witness box and ask him. "The liquidator has the power to do that under the Companies Act. I don't know why that hasn't been done."
Bryers hung up when the Herald on Sunday called on Friday and did not respond to emailed questions. Liquidator Jeff Meltzer could not be reached.
Westpac's $11.2m win opens door to bankrupt Mark Bryers
Bob Dey | Thursday July 16 2009 - 08:01am
Westpac NZ got summary judgment this week against Mark Bryers – head of the collapsed Blue Chip Financial group – for $11.2 million, as guarantor of company debt, but the precise debt was not disclosed and the bank would not comment.
However, the High Court judgment enables the bank to take steps to bankrupt Mr Bryers, who has so far eluded that state during the 20 months since the decline of the Blue Chip group became apparent.
In that time the New Zealand franchise group has collapsed and the parent company, renamed Northern Crest Investments and listed – but suspended from trading – on the ASX in Australia, has fought off liquidation.
Two court cases have been conducted by investors in Blue Chip investment schemes to ward off financiers wanting to foreclose on their homes and investment apartments, and against apartment developers seeking to uplift investors’ deposits.
No judgment has been issued yet in either case.
Mr Bryers still faces fraud charges relating to the keeping of company records, but his personal future is not all gloomy.
A month ago, Northern Crest filed accounts showing it made a $15.2 million profit for the year to March 2009, after reporting a $146 million loss for the previous year.
Mr Bryers also managed to find 3 independent directors for the parent company and was able to take himself off the board, at the same time taking the heat off the one company in the group with any likelihood of survival.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/westpac...-bryers-105658
Bob Dey | Thursday July 16 2009 - 08:01am
Westpac NZ got summary judgment this week against Mark Bryers – head of the collapsed Blue Chip Financial group – for $11.2 million, as guarantor of company debt, but the precise debt was not disclosed and the bank would not comment.
However, the High Court judgment enables the bank to take steps to bankrupt Mr Bryers, who has so far eluded that state during the 20 months since the decline of the Blue Chip group became apparent.
In that time the New Zealand franchise group has collapsed and the parent company, renamed Northern Crest Investments and listed – but suspended from trading – on the ASX in Australia, has fought off liquidation.
Two court cases have been conducted by investors in Blue Chip investment schemes to ward off financiers wanting to foreclose on their homes and investment apartments, and against apartment developers seeking to uplift investors’ deposits.
No judgment has been issued yet in either case.
Mr Bryers still faces fraud charges relating to the keeping of company records, but his personal future is not all gloomy.
A month ago, Northern Crest filed accounts showing it made a $15.2 million profit for the year to March 2009, after reporting a $146 million loss for the previous year.
Mr Bryers also managed to find 3 independent directors for the parent company and was able to take himself off the board, at the same time taking the heat off the one company in the group with any likelihood of survival.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/westpac...-bryers-105658
