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The Bankrupt, the Fugitive, and the Collapse of Toplace's Billion-Dollar Empire

by Yellow Van

A bankrupt consultant played a pivotal role in securing his insolvency firm a highly lucrative job — managing the collapse of fugitive Jean Nassif’s property empire, which went under with debts exceeding $1.24 billion, including $88.5 million owed to suppliers and tradespeople.

New revelations about the downfall of Nassif’s Toplace group have emerged in documents presented to the Federal Court this week by administrators from dVT Group. These papers reveal that secured creditors, such as banks with mortgages on Toplace properties and offshore lenders in tax havens like the British Virgin Islands, are owed $1 billion.

Riad Tayeh, Jean Nassif, and Toplace’s Skyview development in Castle Hill.

Unsecured creditors, meanwhile, have filed claims totaling an estimated $244 million.

Court filings also indicate that Riad Tayeh, founder of dVT Group, played a key role in securing his firm's appointment as administrators. Despite being declared bankrupt in June last year with $5.4 million in debt, Tayeh, now a consultant, and colleague Antony Resnick attended crucial meetings with Toplace executives in the days leading up to the firm’s appointment as administrator.

Among those attending the meetings on June 19 was Jean Nassif’s 29-year-old daughter, Ashlyn, whose legal practicing certificate has been suspended while she fights charges related to a $150 million fraud tied to Toplace’s Skyview development in Castle Hill.

Riad Tayeh was declared bankrupt in June last year.

Just days before the meetings, a warrant was issued for the arrest of Jean Nassif, 55, who fled Sydney for Dubai in December 2022. Jean and Ashlyn Nassif are accused of falsifying contracts to secure a $150 million loan from Westpac.

On July 7, Resnick and fellow dVT partner Suelen McCallum were appointed voluntary administrators for Toplace, following a resolution passed by Jean Nassif, Toplace’s sole director, via email just hours prior. The administrators now face the task of handling one of New South Wales’ largest corporate collapses.

This week, Resnick filed an affidavit in the Federal Court indicating that while Toplace’s assets are valued at approximately $1.47 billion, its debts are nearly the same amount.

According to Toplace’s website, Jean Nassif’s company has delivered around 30,000 residential units, shopping centers, and commercial properties throughout Sydney. Despite this, several owners’ corporations have filed claims amounting to nearly $124 million to address serious defects in Toplace’s buildings. Administrators are also investigating more than 3,000 residential apartments still under development.

Ashlyn Nassif departs Surry Hills Police Station in March. (Credit: Brook Mitchell)

Further complicating the administrators' task is the web of intercompany loans among Nassif's entities, which amount to $319 million. A staff member suggested there may be another $400 million in loans involving Nassif entities that are not yet under administration. The administrators noted difficulty in unraveling the debt due to "intermingling of financial records," adding that Toplace’s financial books had not been properly updated since 2021.

The complexity is heightened by a possible asset split between Jean Nassif and his estranged wife Nissy, who is described in court documents as "the estranged wife." The Federal Court has granted dVT an additional six months to untangle the financial wreckage.

Images from Nissy Nassif’s Instagram page showing her and Jean Nassif with her prized yellow Lamborghini. (Credit: Instagram)

According to documents filed with ASIC, dVT Group maintains that the meetings Tayeh and Resnick attended before their appointment as administrators do not affect their objectivity or impartiality. Resnick and McCallum also assured there were no other relationships that would compromise their independence.

Jean Nassif is wanted over an outstanding warrant in relation to alleged fraud-related offenses. (Credit: Police Media)

However, the Herald has revealed that Tayeh, despite his bankruptcy, remains listed as a director of several companies according to ASIC records. One of these companies also lists Jean Nassif’s brother, Sarkis Nassif, as a fellow director. Both men are founding directors of the Lebanese Christian Charity Foundation, and records show they remain on the board.

Jean Nassif and his older brother Sarkis were previously in business together, and court documents show that both Ashlyn and Sarkis hold power of attorney for Jean Nassif. Tayeh claims he was unaware that Sarkis held power of attorney for his brother and that it was never disclosed to him.

Sarkis, also a prominent property developer, has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

Tayeh has denied holding any current directorships, including in the charity, stating: “I have resigned from and am not a director of any company or organization, nor have I attended any meetings in that capacity since May last year.” Under the Corporations Act, bankrupt individuals are prohibited from managing corporations or serving as directors, with penalties for breaches including fines and imprisonment.

Although Tayeh claims to have resigned from all directorships, corporate records still list him as a director of nine companies.

One such company is Kollakorn, which previously had as a fellow director Sevag Chalabian, a former lawyer sentenced to 12 years in prison for laundering $24 million linked to the Plutus Payroll fraud.

Related Article: "I’m gonna hurt them": Jean Nassif lashes out in an extraordinary tirade from "rehab"

In a statement, Tayeh said, “My bankruptcy is a matter of public record. I have nothing to hide. As difficult as the decade-long court case that preceded it was, both personally and professionally, I am one of many Australians who face this challenge each year. It does not prevent us from continuing our lives.”