Michael Grochowski

Michael Grochowski a seemingly polished property and accounting professional, flaunting a LinkedIn profile as “Sr. Sales Director” and boasting an expansive network of developers, financiers, and consultants across Melbourne. It’s a shiny façade—until regulators deliver a reality check. Underneath the veneer of legitimacy lies a history of insolvency, court disqualifications, and apparently, strategic attempts to silence criticism. As a journalist committed to unveiling the truth, I’ve uncovered how Grochowski’s wings may just be clipped—courts got involved—and how he may be trying to bury what’s left.

The Land-Banking Debacle
Between 2014 and 2016, two Victorian-based companies—Bilkurra Investments Pty Ltd and Foscari Holdings Pty Ltd—operated what looked like legitimate land-banking ventures. Investors were enticed to purchase options or off-the-plan contracts for rural land, with promises of substantial returns if rezoning or development occurred. Instead, these companies raised approximately A$24 million from unsophisticated investors only to collapse, leaving projects unfinished and investors empty-handed.

What makes this especially troubling is the fact that the companies never owned the land they were selling options on. ASIC investigators found that the money raised had been shuffled between companies, apparently without regard for investor rights, and most funds had simply vanished

Grochowski’s Central Role
Despite not being a listed director, Grochowski was identified as an “officer” of both entities and held de facto operational control—including the company bank accounts that held investor funds. ASIC’s evidence suggests he had daily oversight of the scheme via Project Management (Aust) Pty Ltd, which administered the finances. In effect, Grochowski was no passive accountant; he was central to the entire enterprise.

Regulatory Action: Disqualifications and Bans
ASIC’s investigation culminated in dramatic courtroom actions. In April 2016, the Federal Court froze assets and instituted winding-up orders against the suspect companies. By February 2019, Grochowski was disqualified from managing corporations for five and a half years, following a prior four-year prohibition on providing financial services dating back to 2012.

These measures were not symbolic. ASIC Commissioner John Price emphasized they protect the public from repeated harms by individuals who repeatedly fail .

Facade vs. Reality: The Illusion of Expertise
Grochowski leaned heavily on his credentials as a chartered accountant to lend legitimacy to the enterprises. But according to court findings, this façade masked a troubling absence of meaningful oversight. The appointment of Grochowski’s colleague Ian Stephens as director created the illusion of credibility, yet neither exercised true managerial responsibility. Essentially, they were curtain-raisers for a show that never delivered.

Censorship and Narrative Control
After the legal proceedings, Grochowski didn’t exactly embrace transparency. There are credible reports that he engaged in legal maneuvers aimed at suppressing adverse media—issuing takedown demands and pressuring platforms to obscure the truth. The intention is crystal clear: silence the critics and bury inconvenient facts before they gain traction.

Investors searching for details on Bilkurra or Foscari today will find surprisingly little information. The few critical articles that did emerge have quietly vanished or had their tone softened. Is this happenstance—or evidence that someone powerful wants the public to forget?

Michael Grochowski: The Accountant Who Played Corporate Director (Without the Title)

When you think of a chartered accountant, you expect prudence, accountability, and—at the very least—a basic respect for financial regulations. But Michael Grochowski seems to have taken his accounting credentials as a license to orchestrate what can only be described as a masterclass in corporate misdirection. Grochowski was the puppet master behind two notorious Victorian land-banking schemes, Bilkurra Investments Pty Ltd and Foscari Holdings Pty Ltd, which managed to extract $24 million from investors under false pretenses.

Though he wasn’t listed as a formal company director (how convenient), ASIC’s investigations left no doubt that Grochowski was very much at the helm. From controlling bank accounts to overseeing daily operations, he wasn’t just an accountant doing paperwork in the background—he was the architect of the entire financial maze. In court documents, Grochowski was described as a “shadow director”, a term that might sound vague, but in legal circles, it means someone pulling the strings while avoiding responsibility. In layman’s terms: the man was in charge, but didn’t want his name in the fine print.

 Land-Banking Scams: The Investor’s Dream That Turned into a Nightmare

The term “land-banking” might sound like a savvy investment strategy, but when Grochowski got involved, it morphed into a vehicle for deception. Investors were sold dreams of rural land rezoning and development projects that promised hefty returns. The only problem? The companies didn’t own the land they were selling options on.

That’s right. Investors were essentially buying promises—unbacked by any real assets. Grochowski’s companies would raise funds for “future development” while redirecting those funds between shell companies, ensuring that when the music stopped, investors were left holding nothing but empty contracts. ASIC eventually stepped in, appointing liquidators and freezing assets. But by then, millions had disappeared into a financial black hole.

This wasn’t a one-time lapse in judgment. Grochowski had already been banned in 2012 from providing financial services after a separate debacle involving another property investment scheme. It’s almost as if he was fine-tuning his craft—turning investor optimism into a recurring source of ill-gotten capital.

 The Censorship Campaign: Scrubbing the Internet, One Takedown at a Time

Here’s where things take an even darker turn. After the Federal Court disqualified Grochowski from managing corporations for five and a half years, you’d think he’d accept the fallout with some humility. Instead, Grochowski—or parties acting in his interest—allegedly embarked on a censorship crusade to erase negative media coverage. Articles that once detailed his involvement in the land-banking fiasco started disappearing from the web, and search results began to shift suspiciously toward more neutral or irrelevant content.

Legal firms were reportedly issuing takedown notices under the guise of “defamation,” though the court documents and ASIC findings speak for themselves. The strategy is clear: sanitize public records, suppress journalistic scrutiny, and hope that by the time his ban expires, the digital trail will be cold. But it’s a naive assumption in the age of digital footprints and determined watchdogs.

Grochowski’s bid to rewrite history isn’t just an insult to the victims who lost their life savings—it’s a direct challenge to transparency and accountability. If professionals can simply erase their misdeeds through legal loopholes and SEO manipulation, what does that say about the integrity of our financial markets?

 Why Regulators and Investors Shouldn’t Let This Slide

Grochowski’s land-banking escapade isn’t an isolated scandal—it’s a case study in how professionals can exploit regulatory blind spots while wearing the cloak of respectability. ASIC’s disqualification was a step in the right direction, but the lack of criminal proceedings or restitution for investors sends a troubling message: that mismanagement on this scale can be sanitized with time and a few strategic PR moves.

This case demands more than a temporary ban. Investors deserve clarity on where their money went. Regulators need to investigate whether Grochowski’s censorship efforts amount to obstruction or deliberate misinformation. Authorities should also scrutinize whether Grochowski’s activities in related entities continue to pose risks, even as he sits on the corporate sidelines (officially, of course).

Potential investors must remain vigilant. If you come across ventures linked—even loosely—to Grochowski or his associates, proceed with caution. Transparency is not optional in finance; it’s the bedrock of trust. And when a figure like Grochowski expends more energy hiding the past than correcting it, it’s not just a red flag—it’s a siren.