ASIC corners MinRes

👋 G’day

Today’s brief:

• ASIC launches Section 19 probe into MinRes’ founder.

• Apple secretly teams up with SpaceX for Starlink iPhones.

• US Court hinders KPMG’s legal market entry.

Enjoy your morning coffee ☕️

PRACTICE POINTS

ASIC corners MinRes boss

• Chris Ellison, MinRes' founder, is now in ASIC’s crosshairs, slapped with a Section 19 notice alongside CFO Mark Wilson. The probe follows reports of tax havens, undisclosed property deals, and IPO allocations benefiting Ellison’s inner circle. With Ellison and chairman James McClements stepping down, investor confidence is on shaky ground as the mining mogul braces for ASIC’s grilling.

• In the wake of the Cbus controversy, super funds, banks, and insurers could soon face stricter governance rules, including tougher checks on whether key appointments are fit and proper persons. APRA is set to release a detailed paper outlining proposed changes in the coming months, with engagement on draft standards expected later in 2025.

• Everyone’s on Big Super’s case. After repeated episodes of poor customer service, the Treasury is drafting mandatory standards for super funds, with the immediate focus being on slow payment of death benefits and insurance claims, as well as improving customer communication.

• IP Australia has launched a new IP Rights Overview tool, making it easier to track the latest IP trends and filing patterns. Users can now access data, infographics, and insights at a glance—no deep dives required.

WORD ON THE STREET

KPMG law licence in limbo

• The Arizona Supreme Court hit pause on KPMG’s request to practice law in the state, asking for more details before making a decision. For now, the application is in limbo, with the court offering no specifics or timeline on when a final ruling will be made.

• Allens has poached leading real estate partner Carrie Rogers from rival Clayton Utz. Rogers spent more than 18 years at Clutz before deciding its time for a change.

• Hamilton Locke's owner, HPX Group, is diving into ESG consulting with the launch of Materra Consulting. Leading the charge will be Linda Romanovska, RSM Australia’s ESG and client services partner. She’s no stranger to the sustainability scene, having helped shape Australia's sustainability regs. Romanovska, however, isn’t blind to the ESG backlash that flared up with Trump’s election. But looks like HPX is betting on green being more than just a trend.

• Hamilton Locke itself is also making moves – this time internally. The firm has promoted 10 lawyers to senior roles, including Daniel Owen, who’s been promoted to special counsel in its Perth office. Check out the full list of promotes here.

TALKING POINTS

What really killed Catch?

• So, what really killed Catch? While Wesfarmers claims global competition from Amazon and Temu was to blame, insiders point to a different story—one where Wesfarmers drove Catch into the ground. Reasons include:

  • Pushing out key execs, losing the team that built Catch’s success.

  • Shifting from Catch’s strengths (niche "catch of the day" deals) to competing directly on price and delivery, a battle it couldn’t win.

  • Overloading the business with bureaucracy and "corporate arrogance," ignoring the startup’s feedback and agility.

• Gold traders, desperate to dodge potential US tariffs, have flooded New York with bullion—so much so that London’s running low. The squeeze is real: withdrawals from the Bank of England are now facing 4–8 week delays.

• In-house shake-up ahead: Daniel Stirling, director at G2 Legal, is predicting a busy year ahead for the in-house hiring market. The 2024 Axiom In-House Report suggests that 2025’s staff retention outlook is looking even bleaker than last year, with more in-house lawyers unhappy in their roles and ready to jump ship.

• Chinese tech company Alibaba just launched its Qwen 2.5 AI model, claiming it’s surpassed DeepSeek-V3. And the timing? Released on the first day of Chinese New Year—when most are off celebrating. Seems like DeepSeek’s rapid rise in the last 3 weeks is putting pressure on not just global rivals but local ones too.

TREASURY

RBA rate cut on the cards? It’s likely. Australia’s inflation cooldown has markets eyeing a rate cut as soon as next month. Core inflation dipped to 3.2% in Q4—below the expected 3.3%.

DEAL ROOM

Chem Warehouse $15bn pub deal

• Chemist Warehouse has cleared the final hurdle in its reverse takeover of Sigma Healthcare, with shareholders approving the transaction yesterday. Founders Jack and Sam Gance, along with Mario Verrocchi, now hold a stake in Sigma worth $15bn. And get this—approval came after a 16-minute meeting at a Melbourne pub. Now that’s the Aussie dream.

• As Steve McCann fights to keep the lights on at Star Casino, distressed debt investor Oaktree Capital is keeping a close eye on Star’s financial troubles. No offers have been made yet for the casino. But word is, they’re working alongside White & Case restructuring partner Timothy Sackar. Meanwhile, Star Casino finally has some good news - it’s cashed in $60m from divesting its Sydney Event Centure.

• HSBC is winding down its M&A operations in Europe and America, instead doubling down on Asia and the Middle East—regions where it’s already raking in the bulk of its profits.

• AI-powered medtech Harrison.ai has secured a $32m investment from a government-owned fund to accelerate its AI technology here in Australia. The move comes as the industry faces a growing shortage of radiologists and pathologists.

SECTOR SPECIFIC

ANZ’s $70m walkout

🚜 DIGGERS

• Lithium’s on the up. Pilbara Minerals’ CEO is calling the bottom of the lithium market after the WA-based miner saw a jump in its December quarterly revenue.

• Australia’s largest independent coal miner, Whitehaven, has fetched “disappointing” prices over the last quarter as the coal super-cycle fades. The miner remains optimistic, predicting long-term price growth from steelmaking coal shortage and rising demand from India.

• Australian carbon credits surged nearly 30% in value in 2024, reaching a total of $1.1bn—up from $871m the previous year. The spike was driven by heavy emitters trying to meet stricter climate commitments.

🏦 FIN

• ANZ’s Singapore credit trading team walked out after a tough bonus season—it happens to the best of us The exit is set to leave a $70m hole, and global bank Standard Chartered has already poached most of them.

• Star fundie Jun Bei Liu is set to launch a new long-short equity strategy next month, kicking off with A$1.5bn. Teaming up with Ten Cap CEO Jason Todd, the duo will zero in on S&P/ASX 200 stocks.

🏡 RETAIL & REAL ESTATE

• In a redacted submission to the ACCC, Woolworths urges the regulator to factor in non-supermarket rivals like Amazon when assessing competition. Woolies argues these players can offer strong grocery options in certain categories, even without the full supermarket range.

• Mosaic Brands’ receivers are pulling the plug on its last two labels, Millers and Noni B, resulting in the loss of over 900 jobs.

📱 TECH

• TPG Telecom has flipped the switch on its network-sharing deal with Optus, boosting its regional mobile coverage from 400,000 to 1 million square km. CEO Iñaki Berroeta calls it a game-changer, taking the fight to Telstra’s stronghold.

• Microsoft and OpenAI are looking into a potential data breach after security researchers noticed a group linked to Chinese AI startup DeepSeek exfiltrating a large chunk of data through OpenAI’s application programming interface.

• Apple has secretly teamed up with SpaceX and T-Mobile to bring Starlink support to iPhones. The latest iOS update now enables connectivity with Elon Musk’s satellite network—after months of secret testing.

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