James Packer has reportedly fallen out with the CEO of UBS in Australia. The reason for the feud in all likelihood is business-related, but remains opaque.
The main shareholder of Crown Resorts, an Australian casino operator, has sent a series of «angry and aggressive emails» to Matthew Grounds, the chief executive of UBS in the country, according to a report by the «Australian Financial Review» (behind paywall).
The billionaire accused the banker of profiting of their relationship, which used to be very cozy, according to «AFR». Grounds had been a guest at Packer’s 2007 wedding to Erica Baxter. UBS didn't respond to a finews.asia request for comment, and James Packer’s spokespeople didn’t comment the fallout, according to the story.
Blow for UBS
Packer and Grounds had become friends and are credited with saving the Packer family wealth by selling out of the Nine television network and ACP Magazines business, «AFR» said. UBS is said to have made million in fees thanks to the relationship between the two men.
For the latest transaction on the stock market, Packer used Goldman Sachs instead of UBS, according to the report. He sold 8.24 million Crown shares worth about $107 million. Packer owns almost half of the company’s stock.
