Jon Adgemis, who was once thought to be Sydney’s next pub king, has declared bankruptcy with $1.8 billion in debts after his 22-venue Public Hospitality Group went out of business. Lavish spending, tax investigations, disputes with creditors, and failed refinancing left employees, suppliers, and investors unpaid, making his downfall one of the most dramatic financial collapses in Australia.
From Money to the Pub Game
As a mergers and acquisitions partner at KPMG, Jon Adgemis built his name. He shocked his coworkers in 2019 when he bought the Kurrajong Hotel in Erskineville and started going to pubs. He spent a lot of money on renovations, like a new bar, bathrooms and an extra floor, but the place never opened again.
Two years later, during the pandemic, he started the Public Hospitality Group (PHG), which bought up failing pubs and hotels in Sydney and Melbourne. His goal was to build Instagram-friendly, design-focused places that would attract wealthy city drinkers.
PHG owned 22 hotels and pubs by 2023, including the Strand in Darlinghurst, Oxford House in Paddington, Noah’s Backpackers in Bondi, and the Town Hall Hotel in Balmain. Many people thought he could be a competitor to Justin Hemmes of Merivale, but people said his public relations skills were better than his business skills. “Even close followers were shocked he was able to borrow $1.4 billion in a personal capacity,” one account said.
Jon Adgemis’s Growth Through Debt
PHG’s growth was fuelled by short-term, high-interest private loans at a time when banks were pulling back from lending on real estate. Deutsche Bank, GEMI Investments, Archibald Capital, and Muzinich were all involved in the lending stack.
A $4.5 million block in Hurstville was used as collateral for $134 million in loans, some of which were owed to Carlton & United Breweries. A lot of the loans were based on what the property would be worth in the future, not what it was worth now. For example, Noah’s Backpackers in Bondi was bought for $68 million in 2022 and was worth $130 million after the conversion.
Fall and Sale
PHG companies owed about $500 million by the end of 2024. Unpaid were staff wages, super, suppliers, and council taxes. Public Hospitality Operating Co went out of business in September.
Tim Cook, the liquidator, found:
- The ATO is owed $123 million.
- $1.29 billion in assets are “missing.”
- There is strong evidence that PHG traded while it was bankrupt.
- After that, Deutsche led a $400 million refinancing that gave creditors 17 cents on the dollar, but it only put off the inevitable.
Jon Adgemis-Life vs. Reality
Adgemis thought he would be rich even as his debts grew:
- Rent for a Bondi penthouse is $60,833 a month.
- Living in the “Bang & Olufsen” mansion in Point Piper without paying rent.
- Both the Range Rover Sport ($230,000) and the Mercedes-AMG G63 ($240,000) are heavily financed.
- A 95-foot yacht that costs $2.4 million in loans and $2.4 million in maintenance over five years.
Trustees found that the company’s money paid for his yacht and rent. Accountants even looked through his wardrobe and found that his designer suits weren’t worth much when they were sold. He said he owned $30,000 worth of things, including two pieces of art (one of which was Love Hurts) and only $8 in retirement savings.
The ATO said that he was living a “lavish lifestyle that was not consistent with being bankrupt.”
Creditors Turn Down Rescue Plans
Adgemis suggested a Personal Insolvency Agreement (PIA) in 2025 that would pay creditors 0.15–0.17c per dollar, or about $2.6–3 million. It needed 75% of the value to be approved, but people said it was pointless.
“It’s a slap in the face,” said one worker. AFSA and the ATO didn’t like the deal because they thought it wasn’t worth much and said that lying to creditors could get you two years in prison.
Some of the most important creditors were:
GEMI Investments (about $400 million). Director George Fleming: “He’s completely f…ed us, but he hasn’t walked.”
- Deutsche Bank has secured claims over five pubs worth $371 million.
- ATO: $162 million in personal taxes and about $300 million in possible GST/company taxes.
- Richard Gazal ($27.7 million) was the one who started one of the lawsuits.
- George Confos ($900,000).
- Breweries Carlton and United.
- 78 unsecured creditors, including 800 employees who were owed wages and $4.5 million in superannuation.
- People said that meetings were a choice between “vengeance and pragmatism.”
Fights in the courtroom
The Federal Court let the ATO replace Richard Gazal as the plaintiff in September 2025. Justice Elizabeth Raper asked Adgemis, “Where is he?” when he wasn’t there. His lawyer said he was “at a residential premises in Sydney.”
The judge put the case on hold and told him to file evidence by noon on September 30 and have a hearing on October 3 at 9 a.m. His lawyers said that hundreds of ATO documents had been sent out late.
The Dispute and Receivership at the Empire Hotel
Creditors lost their patience after a long-running fight over the sale of the Empire Hotel (Annandale). Deutsche Bank chose McGrathNicol to be the receivers for five secured venues and KordaMentha to be the administrators for the company that runs them.
The Empire Hotel, the Diplomat Hotel, the Exchange Hotel, Claridge House, and the South Bondi Hotel (formerly Noah’s) were all affected. McGrathNicol said that the Empire and Diplomat were “iconic” places that would probably draw a lot of buyers. The Exchange and Claridge would be finished and sold in 2026. Disputes between contractors caused even more delays.
Declaring Bankruptcy
Jon Adgemis filed for bankruptcy on October 2, 2025, just one day before the ATO’s $162 million case. He took the blame and said, “I am very disappointed…” “I will work with the trustee completely so that the process can go on as planned.”
Some of the restrictions are:
- Bankruptcy lasts for three years.
- Travel bans without permission.
- The most you can spend on a car is $9,600.
- No more running businesses.
- Half of the rental money (like for the Bondi penthouse) went to creditors.
His family promised $3 million, which they say came from his sister’s divorce settlement, but the trustees turned it down because they didn’t have any proof.
READ MORE : Sydney pub baron Jon Adgemis declares bankruptcy over $1.8bn debt
The Family Home in Rose Bay
Another scandal had to do with the family home in Rose Bay (2A Conway Avenue), which he shared with his mother. She bought it for $4.45 million in 2018, but it was mortgaged for $6.2 million without her permission.
The property was taken back by July 2025. The gates were padlocked, the furniture was taken away, and “mortgagee in possession” signs were put up. It was advertised as a townhouse redevelopment site and listed for $7–8 million.
The Noah’s Backpackers Scandal
Noah’s Backpackers cost $68 million to buy in 2022. The plan was to turn it into a mid-range hotel worth $130 million. But refinancing deals sent builder margins and management fees to another Adgemis-linked company, which led to arguments.
The Archibald Capital Notes Scandal
Archibald Capital’s $6.7 million convertible notes, which were supposed to give employees benefits under a deed of company arrangement, were another blow. Instead, people thought the notes were worthless. The staff still hadn’t been paid.
Ben Madsen, the director of Archibald, said that the collapse “severely affected” him.
Jon Adgemis is being looked into
The ATO and AFSA are still looking into claims that 27 companies made false GST claims, which could cost them about $300 million. Trustees also said that Adgemis might not have revealed all of its assets and that WLP Restructuring’s investigations were not thorough enough.
Tania Waterhouse, a former ATO lawyer, and Michael Cranston, a former deputy commissioner who was found not guilty in a $105 million tax fraud case, are on his legal team.
Jon Adgemis’s legacy
Jon Adgemis went from being called Sydney’s next pub king to being at the centre of one of Australia’s biggest personal debt failures. His failure left creditors unpaid, 800 workers without pay and benefits, and contractors stuck.
The symbolism was clear: a very important meeting of creditors took place in the Sir James Fairfax Room. It took Fairfax five generations to fall apart, but Adgemis did it in just one.
His story shows how dangerous it is to speculate with private credit, not have good financial discipline, and spend too much. Jon Adgemis tells a cautionary tale behind the glamorous image of Sydney nightlife: reputation can’t take the place of responsibility.
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