Stephen Hathway.
The Commission of Taxation (CoT) and his New South Wales counterpart continue to tighten their grip on outlandishly successful formworker the Dalma Group.
That process has involved the ATO persuading many of those insolvency practitioners who’ve taken appointments over Dalma Group entities to discontinue in favour of the ATO’s preferred appointee.
Apart from two notable hold outs, most have agreed, no doubt after garnering assurances that the ATO would vote in favour of their final remuneration resolutions.
This week KPT Restructuring partners Ozem Kassem and Jason Tang fell on their swords to make way for the ATO’s darling, Stephen Hathway of Helm Advisory.
Kassem and Tang were appointed as liquidators via creditors voluntary resolution to The European Group Pty Ltd in April 2020 and to Formann Group Pty Ltd in November 2021.
Despite meeting minutes suggesting there was much to be investigated and the contemplation of public examinations neither administration appears to have progressed very far.
In the case of The European Group Tang in July 2020 told creditors he’d identified an insolvent trading claim against the sole director Abdul Said, 31 of almost $4.5 million and confirmed the ATO had lodged a claim for unpaid BAS liabilities in excess of $4.7 million. Revenue NSW meanwhile lodged a proof in that liquidation for more than $800,000. Until this week not much else has happened.
The latest appointments take Hathway’s tally to at least eight, all of which are linked to Dalma Group either as related entities or as customers.
The entities are: Plus Form (AUST) Pty Ltd, All Accurate Pty Ltd, Plus Form (NSW) Pty Ltd, SQM Group Australia Pty Ltd, SQM Group NSW Pty Ltd, Admin Form Pty Ltd, The European Group Pty Ltd and Formann Group Pty Ltd.
One entity the ATO, Revenue NSW and Hathway have yet to bring into the Helm Advisory tent is Dalma Form Specialist Pty Ltd (DFS), which remains under the control of Jones Partners Bruce Gleeson and Daniel Soire, despite the tax collectors’ efforts to separate them.
It was the application by Revenue NSW in 2024 which brought Dalma Group to public attention after it was revealed that the ATO was alleging massive tax fraud and the group’s controlling family had amassed a property portfolio valued in excess of $50 million.
Further reading:
Resistant liquidators sidestepped by ATO nominee
NSW Revenue moves to topple Jones Partners pair
An issue that will have to be addressed is whether there exists or may arise a conflict of interest and duty between the external administrator of the various companies and their respective creditors?