The order was made against Michael Christodoulou King following a presentation by ASIC of a creditor’s petition regarding his failure to pay a pecuniary penalty order of $300,000.
Justice Kylie Downes made the decision on the basis that Mr King owes provable debts of over $177 million with no evidence to suggest he can make them and a “strong public interest” in protecting the public.
Mr King was one of four officers – who controlled MFS Investment Management (the responsible entity for the Premium Income Fund) –disqualified from managing corporations by the Supreme Court of Queensland in 2017.
The Premium Income Fund (PIF) was a managed investment scheme that misappropriated $147.5 million of funds, which were subsequently used to pay debts owed by other entities in the MFS Group (subsequently known as Octaviar).
The MFS Group collapsed in 2008 owing creditors $2.5 billion.
The Supreme Court of Queensland found in May 2016 that Michael Christodoulou King, Craig Robert White, David Mark Anderson, Guy Hutchings and Marilyn Anne Watts had collectively committed 217 contraventions of the Corporations Act.
In May 2017, Mr King was disqualified for 20 years and ordered to pay a pecuniary penalty of $300,000, pay $177,017,084 compensation to PIF and 60 per cent of ASIC’s costs.
Mr King was partially successful in an appeal to the Queensland Court of Appeal, however the ruling was eventually overturned by the High Court in March 2020.
MFS Group (subsequently known as Octaviar) is in no way connected with MFS Investment Management, the US based global investment manager.
