A $23 million settlement between investors in the failed managed investment scheme Great Southern and Bendigo Bank has been accepted by the Supreme Court.
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Investors will receive just $3.5 million, with $20 million going to legal fees. The settlement represents about $16 for every $10,000 invested.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission had asked the Supreme Court to decide whether the outcome was fair because of the huge proportion going to legal fees.
In his decision yesterday, Justice Clyde Croft said the settlement was better than the alternative, which could have left investors with nothing.
The settlement was between Great Southern investors and Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, which owns a large proportion of the debt.
Great Southern had numerous pine plantations throughout the south-west and other agricultural ventures elsewhere in Australia but collapsed in 2009 after about 47,000 investors contributed almost $2 billion.
The settlement involves borrowers admitting their loans were valid and enforceable.
