Australia’s youngest billionaire has unveiled his $145 million plans to transform a ‘ghost mansion’ into an elegant multi-level home.
Crypto gambling billionaire Edward Craven, 28, bought the property in Toorak for $80 million less than two years ago.
The currently vacant site is located on the prestigious St Georges Road in the Melbourne suburb’s dedicated ‘billionaire enclave’.
The purchase of the property smashed Victoria’s previous record house price of $52.5 million, but Craven’s planned redevelopment will make the house the most expensive in Australia.
Craven is one of the country’s richest people and his new mansion will cost several times more than Leon Kamenev’s renovation of four waterfront sites in Sydney’s Vaucluse into one mansion, which was completed last year.
Crypto-gambling billionaire Edward Craven to build Australia’s most expensive home (pictured) in Toorak, east Melbourne
Designed by renowned Melbourne architect Paul Conrad, Craven’s home has a stunning 8000 sq m of internal space, The Australian reports.
The architect’s inspiration for the home came from a previous client in the Hamptons, New York state.
Work on Craven’s property began in early February following the demolition of the previously half-built French Renaissance-style mansion that once filled the site.
The now-destroyed building hosted more than 400 influencers and young entrepreneurs at Craven’s Stake.com business partner Bijan Tehrani’s 2022 Halloween party.
The derelict home earned its nickname as the ‘ghost mansion’ after spending 32 years vacant.
Formerly owned by the late Hoyts Entertainment owner Leon Fink, who died in 1993, it was sold in 1991 for $5 million to David Yu, CEO of property developer Ausvest.
Yu left the property untouched for nearly three decades after his 1992 proposal to divide the land into nine plots was rejected by local authorities.
He decided to put the mansion on the market 28 years later in early 2020, but reportedly turned down several offers before selling to Craven.
Demolition work on the Toorak property began in November, with Craven’s wealthy neighbors looking on as a wrecking ball tore its way through the mansion’s exterior brick walls.
Craven (pictured) made his fortune by starting his cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook business, Stake.com, with Tehrani in 2017
Excavation for a large underground space is also underway on the job, overseen by Melbourne construction firm Davies Henderson.
A planning permit previously issued for the site in 2001 would allow Craven to build a home up to four storeys high, but the current plan is only for two storeys.
The mansion will have a symmetrical facade to give a sense of ‘harmony and balance’ from the street and tranquility from the backyard.
Conrad is convinced that the home will not be a “big house for the sake of a big house”.
Instead of size, the architect will focus on creating quality living spaces.
The new home will take an estimated three years to complete, meaning Craven will be 31 when he finally moves in.
However, he will be more than comfortable in his second Toorak mansion while he awaits the completion of the project.
In March 2022, the 28-year-old mogul paid $38 million for a two-story Orrong Road home on nearly 2,000 square meters of land, which features a pool, reflecting pond and lighting installation by Articolo Studios.
The property was rebuilt by Melbourne property developer Will Deague and was also designed by Conrad.
The property was previously known to house a ‘ghost mansion’ (pictured) which stood derelict for 32 years
Craven made his fortune by starting his cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook business, Stake.com, with Tehrani in 2017.
As Stake.com is an online gambling platform, it is prohibited to operate in Australia.
Nevertheless, the company has made huge profits from hundreds of thousands of players globally and has become one of the largest gambling entities in the world.