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Little Group
Paul Little's private investment group, founded 2006, develops Melbourne residential property, operates Melbourne Jet Base and runs Port Phillip Ferries.
Little Group
Little Group was founded in 2006 by Paul Little AO, the former managing director of Toll Holdings, following his exit from the logistics company he grew into one of Australia's largest transport firms. The sale of Toll provided the capital base for what is effectively a private family investment vehicle — though structured and branded as a diversified operating company rather than a traditional single-family office. Paul Little runs the group alongside his wife Jane Hansen AO, with Murray Rance serving as chief operating officer. The firm's deployment concentrates on Australian real estate, aviation infrastructure and passenger transport. Its property portfolio includes residential developments across Melbourne's inner suburbs — Central South Yarra, Dux Richmond Hill, Viridi Prahran and ILK South Yarra among them — plus the Grace Victoria Quarter residential project in Auckland, New Zealand. On the commercial side, it holds a portfolio of Metro Selection office and industrial assets around Melbourne. Aviation interests center on the Melbourne Jet Base, a fixed-base operation at Tullamarine airport that caters to corporate and private aircraft, and the firm itself operates a Gulfstream G650ER. Passenger ferry operations run under the Port Phillip Ferries brand, connecting Melbourne's Docklands with Portarlington and Geelong. In May 2024, the firm's ferry service expanded its weekday schedule between Portarlington and Docklands with a year-round commuter timetable, signaling longer-term commitment to the transport corridor. Team size and total deployment are not publicly disclosed. The group's Portarlington Grand Hotel acquisition extended its reach into regional hospitality. Philanthropy flows through the Hansen Little Foundation, which Paul and Jane Hansen co-founded and which operates with a separate board, making grants in medical research, arts and tertiary education. Both Paul Little and Jane Hansen are significant donors to the University of Melbourne — Little Hall, a purpose-built residential college, bears the family name. This is a founder-led balance-sheet investor with no external limited partners and no fund structure. The architecture — a privately held company that owns and operates hard assets directly rather than allocating to external managers — distinguishes it from most Australian family offices, which tend to favor pooled funds or minority co-investments. Succession thinking is not publicly articulated, though the involvement of Jane Hansen across both the investment and philanthropic arms suggests a dual-principal model rather than a single-operator dependency.
General information
Firm type
Generalist
Year founded
2006
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Oceania
Country
Australia
City
Melbourne
Corporate office
Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Principals
Paul Little
Chairman and Founder
Jane Hansen
Co-founder, Hansen Little Foundation
Murray Rance
Chief Operating Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Where does Paul Little's wealth originate?
Paul Little made his fortune as managing director of Toll Holdings, the Australian logistics and transport company he transformed through a series of acquisitions into a business with operations across Asia-Pacific. In 2006, Toll was split into two entities and its major operating assets were ultimately acquired by Japan Post in 2015 for A$6.5 billion. Little sold his stake and deployed the proceeds into the founding of Little Group.
Does Little Group take outside capital, or is it purely Paul Little's own balance sheet?
Little Group operates as a private investment company deploying Paul Little's personal capital. There is no evidence of external limited partners, fund structures, or third-party co-investors in its operating assets. The portfolio companies — from Melbourne Jet Base to Port Phillip Ferries — are directly owned and controlled by the group.
What is the firm's real estate strategy?
The firm develops and holds residential and commercial property, concentrated in inner Melbourne and with one known New Zealand project. Residential developments include ILK South Yarra, Central South Yarra, Dux Richmond Hill, and Viridi Prahran — all targeting the premium end of the market. Commercial holdings include the Metro Selection Portfolio of office and industrial assets around Melbourne, plus the mixed-use Tip Top Bakery redevelopment in Brunswick East.
How does the Hansen Little Foundation relate to Little Group?
The Hansen Little Foundation is a separate philanthropic entity co-founded by Paul Little and his wife Jane Hansen AO. It is a major donor to the University of Melbourne, medical research, and arts institutions. While the foundation's capital originates from the same family wealth, its board and grant-making operate independently of Little Group's commercial investment decisions.
Does Little Group invest outside Australia?
Its operations are overwhelmingly Australian. The one confirmed offshore asset is the Grace Victoria Quarter residential development in Auckland, New Zealand. Aviation and ferry assets are all based in Victoria. The firm's private aircraft — a Gulfstream G650ER and a vintage DC-3 — are registered and operated domestically.
Who runs day-to-day operations across the portfolio?
Murray Rance serves as chief operating officer, overseeing the group's property, aviation and transport operations. Paul Little remains chairman and founder, actively involved in strategic decisions. The governance structure appears traditional for a founder-controlled private company — a small executive team reporting directly to the principals.
Is Little Group a family office or an operating company?
It functions as a single-family investment office in substance — deploying the wealth of Paul Little and Jane Hansen — but is organized as a privately held operating company that directly runs businesses rather than allocating to external fund managers. This hybrid structure puts it closer to a proprietary investment holding company than a conventional family office.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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