On Thursday, CMU reported that Peter Löhr, a ‘general advisor’ to Proper Group AG - which is currently battling bankruptcy in the Swiss courts - had previously been convicted of embezzlement in Sweden.
Löhr, a general enforcer and svengali to a succession of C-level appointees at the former Utopia Music, now rebranded Proper Group, had previously been convicted of embezzling money from bankrupt companies in Sweden. Today, Mitchell Asset Management founder and Proper Group AG investor John Mitchell emailed CMU asking us to make it clear that “Peter Löhr does not advise John Mitchell”.
In a startling email, Mitchell acknowledges that Löhr’s history was well known to the founders of Utopia Music - which was rebranded as Proper Group AG earlier this year - adding that Löhr was hired by Utopia founder Mattias Hjelmstedt, and had “advised of his history prior to engagement by the company”.
In the same email, Mitchell characterised CMU’s reporting of Löhr’s history as being “inaccurate and libellous”. However, not only is Mitchell unable to point out any specific inaccuracies or libels - he does not dispute that Löhr was convicted as reported - but he also notes “prior to his employment at Utopia, and hired by Mattias Hjelmstedt, Peter Löhr advised of his history which occurred over 20+ years ago where he had fulfilled all obligations made of him”.
In a series of phone calls yesterday, prior to Mitchell’s email, representatives of Proper Group AG asked CMU several times to make adjustments to our article, saying repeatedly that there was no direct connection between Peter Löhr and Mitchell Asset Management - something that we had not, at any point, alleged, beyond the fact that they are both closely associated with Proper Group AG.
We are, of course, happy to make it clear that Peter Löhr does not work for Mitchell Asset Management. That said, the association is undeniably embarrassing for Mitchell - which probably explains his aggressive attempts to push back against the article.
What is possibly even more embarrassing is that this is the second time that John Mitchell has been associated with someone accused of embezzling funds. Nenad Petrovic, a former director of Mitchell’s financial services outfit, Mitchell Asset Management Pty Ltd - formerly known as Almane Pty Ltd - was permanently banned from providing financial services advice in March 2012, after he withdrew AUD$208,688 from client accounts over a period of four months between 16 November 2009 and 30 March 2010. According to John Mitchell's Linkedin profile, Mitchell Asset Management was founded in April 2008.
On discovering the activity, Mitchell Asset Management reported Petrovic’s conduct to the Australian Securities and Investment Commission, and was able to recover $200,000 of the outstanding funds from Mr Petrovic. There is no implication whatsoever that John Mitchell himself was involved in the misappropriation of client funds. Indeed, it seems likely that it was Mitchell himself who reported the wrongdoing to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, which regulates financial services providers in Australia.
In his email disassociating himself from Löhr, Mitchell told CMU, “Mitchell Asset Management, myself and the board of Proper Group AG demand that you immediately retract your libellous accusations and refrain from making such unfounded accusations in the future. This may be done by several simple edits in the publication, something you are wholly able to action as it is an online publication”.
In particular, Mitchell took issue with a number of statements, calling them “unfounded libelous and incorrect statements”. Upon receipt of the email, CMU was happy to add Mitchell’s clarifications where relevant. You can view the updated article here:
Sam Taylor
In his statement to CMU, Mitchell added that the board of directors of Proper Group AG “has close to €88 million at risk hence the drive to succeed”, adding “I have not been paid since November 2023, in fact I have continued to support the business financially, in addition to spending four of the last seven months in Europe dealing with the company”.
It is understood that Mitchell is currently back in Melbourne where, according to records obtained by CMU, Mitchell Asset Management has been involved in a legal dispute in the Supreme Court’s commercial court under case reference S ECI 2022 04903 “Mitchell Asset Management Pty Ltd (ACN 123 084 491) in its capacity as Trustee for the Mitchell Asset Management Innovation Finance Fund (ABN 52 245 163 671) v. Marissa Di Pasquale”.
That court case started on 11 Sep and was heard over a number of days - but judgement has not yet been passed down. For the sake of clarity, CMU makes no allegation of wrongdoing on the part of Mitchell Asset Management, but simply notes the case as a reason that Mitchell may have returned to Melbourne having spent several months in Europe dealing with Proper Group AG matters.
Despite Utopia Music’s rebrand to Proper Group AG having taken place in August - and the company now having been placed into bankruptcy by the Swiss courts - the homepage of Mitchell Asset Management still includes a banner pitching the “Utopia Music Royalty Accelerated Advance Fund” to clients.
The financial services outfit - run out of an office above a nail salon in a Melbourne suburb - says “Australian investors have an opportunity to power the next generation of artists through the new Utopia MRAFF. Utopia Music is a Swiss Music fintech that delivers transparent, data-based solutions for labels, publishers and distributors to monetising undervalued music catalogues”.
The firm adds that it is “one of the few firms of its size with an unrestricted AFSL, traditionally reserved for much larger financial institutions. This license is a testament to the expertise of the Mitchell Asset Management team and their track record”.
The AFSL is the “Australian Financial Services Licence” issued by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. CMU has been able to confirm that Mitchell’s firm, Mitchell Asset Management PTY Ltd, is registered with ASIC as ASF Licence Holder 320019, while “John Paton Mitchell”, of the same firm is registered as an ASF Authorised Representative with the registration number 000322346.