Legal Regulation | Real Estate Development | Sydney Prominent Developer Jean Nassif Faces Criminal Charges as Toplace Company Struggles

Recently, the construction division of Toplace Group, led by renowned Sydney developer Jean Nassif, has come under scrutiny as it faces bankruptcy. Bankruptcy administrators have been appointed to manage the situation.

Prior to the appointment of bankruptcy administrators, Toplace had lost its building license, and NSW Fair Trading had ordered the company to rectify severe defects in the Vicinity apartment building located in Canterbury, southwest Sydney. Regulatory authorities issued warnings about the risk of the building collapsing. In June of this year, the NSW Police’s Organised Crime Squad issued an arrest warrant for 55-year-old Jean Nassif, accusing him of fraud in relation to the Sydney apartment projects developed by Toplace. Mr. Nassif’s daughter, Ashlyn, has also been charged with forgery related to pre-sale documents of the Castle Hill apartment project in northwest Sydney.

Toplace was founded by Nassif in 1992, and since its inception, the company has delivered approximately 30,000 residential units, shopping centres, and commercial suites in Sydney. In 2019, Mr Nassif garnered widespread attention when he posted on Instagram a Lamborghini worth 480,000 Australian dollars as a gift for his wife. In 2021, he sold an industrial development site in Sydney to the Goodman Group for 140 million Australian dollars, making a profit of around 65 million Australian dollars. This year, Mr Nassif sold a 7,000-square-meter apartment site in Zetland to the BTR (Build to Rent) development giant, Greystar Group, for 72 million Australian dollars. Additionally, he sold another land plot in Mascot to the Goodman Group for around 100 million Australian dollars.