Mr Millhouse announced the action based on personal financial losses of more than $10 million and “the effect of APRA’s alleged failings on his hard-earned and long-standing reputation as a company director”.
In a statement, Mr Millhouse urged trustee company directors to “get out now”. Favourable regulatory reviews could not be relied upon from APRA, and the Trio collapse “could easily happen again”.
Mr Millhouse said he has been assisting APRA over the past two years in its investigations into the Trio collapse, where he said he was “an investor and unpaid, non-executive director during 2004 and 2005”.
APRA this week began court proceedings against Mr Millhouse to exclude him from acting as trustee of a super entity or other involvement in the super industry. Mr Millhouse said this comes despite APRA acknowledging he was not associated with the fraud that led to the fund’s collapse.
“This is in no way acceptable to me. I was not a director of Trio when it collapsed. How can I be in any way responsible?” he stated.
“Corporate governance issues at Trio were well documented in board minutes and the documents on several occasions, and were available to APRA.
“I was not a director of Trio at the time of its collapse in 2009, but in 2005 when I had raised concerns, in writing, which were material to governance and prudential capital matters relevant to the granting of Trio’s Responsible Superannuation Entity licence by APRA.
“The regulator failed to pick warning signs which were clearly noted by myself and contained in board minutes. I now have to deal with the consequences of a company which defrauded its investors long after I departed, both as an investor and a non-executive director.
“Someone does need to be held to account for this and it needs to be APRA. As a regulator, how did they fail to see what I could see in 2005,” Mr Millhouse said.
Mr Millhouse said his company, Millhouse IAG, was placed into voluntary administration after being exposed to Trio’s collapse, with Trio acting as responsible entity and trustee for Millhouse IAG’s private equity business.
Mr Millhouse said directors and trustees should not rely on the regulator’s reviews. He said he has not been a director or a trustee of a public superannuation fund since 2005 as he has “sought to resolve these matters”.
