More than two years of Federal Court probes into elusive Nathan Featherby's dealings have culminated in a Supreme Court action against Michael Povey and Charles Straw.
The liquidator of collapsed royalties play Ochre Group has hit Perth businessman Michael Povey with a potential $30 million-plus legal action over the allegedly dodgy dealings of emigre promoter Nathan Featherby.
In a Supreme Court writ, liquidator Jeremy Nipps claims Mr Povey and his business partner Charles Straw knowingly assisted Mr Featherby breaching his fiduciary duties during an alleged trans-Tasman asset shift.
These alleged breaches involved the sale of shares, convertible notes and royalties to the New Zealand-registered company Nuevo Royalty in the nine months leading up to Ochre's collapse in October 2020, according to the writ
Mr Nipps claims in the Supreme Court writ that asset transfers by Mr Featherby were to put Ochre's assets into hands of Nuevo Royalty.
The legal action comes after more than two years of Federal Court public examinations focused on Nuevo Royalty enjoying a $US22 million profit on the June 2020 purchase of the royalties on the stalled Wonmunna iron ore project.
Perth-raised Mr Featherby, the son of well-regarded Perth stockbroker John Featherby, moved from New Zealand tourist haven Queenstown to South America around the time of Ochre's collapse.
Mr Featherby's father, Mr Povey and Mr Straw have all been questioned about business dealings with the former Subiaco footballer.
Mr Nipps' legal team questioned both Mr Povey and Mr Straw in 2023 about Nuevo Royalty having bought the royalties for the Wonmunna iron ore operation from Ochre for $950,000 in June 2020.
Mr Povey distanced himself from Mr Featherby at a public examination encore in September last year, describing the promoter as a narcissist.
The Wonmunna project had been stalled under an agreement between an indigenous corporation and Fortescue Metals Group.
Mineral Resources bought the project in September 2020 and had it operating by March 2020.
Nuevo Royalty, a company controlled by Mr Povey, sold the royalty package to Canadian group Vox for $US22 million ($A31 million) in 2022.
Mr Povey told the Federal Court examination in 2023 he was surprised when MinRes acquired Wonmunna and developed the mine so quickly.
Nuevo Royalty, Mr Featherby and Delaware-registered Rosa Verde have also also been named as defendants in Mr Nipps' Supreme Court action.
But even if the liquidator can prove his case in the Supreme Court, his chances of recovering anything from Mr Featherby are minimal given he has been living in South America.
Mr Nipps was unable to contact him or get him back to Australia for the Federal Court public examinations.
Mr Nipps' Supreme Court writ outlines the sale of a variety of iron ore royalties to Nuevo Royalty from January to July 2020, without providing any details of the sale price or the alleged value of the royalties. It includes a royalty sold on June 18, 2020.
It also makes a variety of allegations about share, convertible and debt transfers from Ochre to Nuevo Royalty.
Mr Nipps is asking the Supreme Court for declarations that Mr Featherby, Mr Straw, Mr Povey, Nuevo Royalty and Rosa Verde knowingly received property in breach of Mr Featherby's breach of fiduciary duties.
The liquidator is seeking an account of profits or equitable compensation from the businessmen and from the companies, or an account of profits from all of the defendants.
