Karl Stefanovic’s cash scramble: How TV star is being squeezed by his six-figure-a-month lifestyle – as his Today Show millions dry up and legal row erupts over podcast
Karl Stefanovic is said to be scrambling for cash to pay for his lavish lifestyle as his Channel Nine funds dry up, six figure monthly living expenses mount and a bitter dispute erupts over the future of his podcast.
With his podcast empire up in the air and his battle with business partner Keshnee Kemp hitting the Supreme Court, Stefanovic is relying on savings and what’s left of his TV settlement to fund his day-to-day life until he’s back on air.
Stefanovic is rumoured to need between $100,000 and $200,000 a month just to cover his $20million property portfolio and maintain his luxury lifestyle with wife Jasmine and their daughter.
He is understood to have received a six-figure settlement tied to his $2million Channel Nine contract after departing Today days after hosting far-right figure Tommy Robinson on The Karl Stefanovic Show podcast, a June 22 interview that ultimately precipitated his exit.
His podcast business, which debuted in January with One Nation Leader Pauline Hanson as the inaugural guest, has accrued more than $1million in sponsorship deals and around $80,000 in monthly program revenue.
In the 66 episodes published since, Stefanovic’s interview guests have included politically aspirant billionaire Clive Palmer and PM Anthony Albanese.
Karl Stefanovic is believed to need between $100,000 and $200,000 a month to cover his expenses on his $20m property portfolio and his uber comfortable lifestyle with wife Jasmine (the couple pictured in May)
Keshnee Kemp’s swift legal action to head off a plan to dump her as director of Stefanovic’s joint podcast company could prove an expensive final parting of the ways from his wife’s childhood friend
Stefanovic (centre) with wife Jasmine, and One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who was his debut podcast interview. He has since lost as a sponsor Ringers Western, makers of his inaugural podcast clobber
Initial sponsors included Rode Microphones, wellness brand Revive5 and wagering giant Neds, however country clothing brand Ringers Western, whose clobber Karl wore during the Hanson interview, did not renew this month.
Stefanovic’s debut episode, which featured Pauline Hanson unloading on Anthony Albanese, Labor and the ABC, has attracted more than 300,000 views on YouTube.
But the venture has gone quiet, with no new episodes released in the past three weeks, with the exception of one pre-recorded months ago with Adrian Portelli on Wednesday night.
Advertising revenue has stalled amid a bitter legal dispute with business partner Keshnee Kemp, who posted an Instagram story of the departures board at Sydney International Airport on Wednesday, indicating she may be travelling overseas.
Kemp, a former magazine editor, Nine producer and Woolworths social content strategist, spent five months producing the podcast while Stefanovic was still at Today, helping secure sponsorships and commercial partnerships.
The controversy exploded following Stefanovic’s interview with Tommy Robinson, during which he labelled then-UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer a ‘w**ker’. Amid widespread backlash, the episode was pulled from the internet less than 12 hours after it was uploaded.
The fallout ultimately cost Stefanovic his job and lucrative seven-figure salary after Nine executives drew a line in the sand, bringing to an end his 25-year association with the network.
It was around this time that relations between Stefanovic and Kemp began to unravel.
Insiders say the former Today host has since come to regret not retaining a controlling stake in the company, instead agreeing to an equal 45 per cent shareholding alongside Kemp.
Keshnee Kemp, right, husband Jason Ibrahim, second left, and Karl and Jasmine Stefanovic were once besties but the falling out over the Tommy Robinson interview which prompted Karl’s exit from Nine proved fatal for the friendship
Stefanovic and his business adviser Anthony Bell (pictured above in 2023) reportedly planned a coup for director of 123 Podcast Keshnee Kemp, but she headed it off in the Supreme Court this week
Their increasingly acrimonious ‘business divorce’ escalated further when Stefanovic moved to oust Kemp from 123 Podcast Pty Ltd at what sources describe as a ‘contentious’ meeting scheduled for Friday morning.
Under the proposal, Stefanovic would combine his 45 per cent holding with the 10 per cent stake owned by his financial adviser, Anthony Bell, to secure the numbers required to remove Kemp as a director.
Kemp, whose married name is Keshnee Ibrahim, launched urgent legal action in the NSW Supreme Court on Monday.
Through her litigation lawyer, Monica Allen of BlackBay Lawyers, Kemp sought an urgent injunction preventing Stefanovic, his company and 123 Podcast Pty Ltd from convening a meeting scheduled for September 18.
Court documents filed overnight also sought to block any vote aimed at removing Kemp, whose full legal name is Keshnee Deborah Ibrahim, as a director of the company.
Stefanovic’s plan was to remove Kemp from the board and replace her with his longtime manager, Sharon Finnigan.
In separate filings, Kemp alleged Stefanovic had engaged in conduct that was ‘unfairly prejudicial or discriminatory’ following the suspension of the podcast in August.
Justice Hammerschlag granted an injunction preventing the meeting from proceeding and ordered the pair to jointly appoint an independent expert to value 123 Podcast ahead of a potential share buyout.
The business is understood to be worth more than $2million, although its valuation is expected to be fiercely contested unless the parties can reach an agreement before next month’s hearing.
His Honour left the door open for a negotiated settlement ahead of the October 13 court date, telling the parties he would welcome ‘some sort of mediation’ if they wished to resolve the dispute without further litigation.
Keshnee Kemp and Karl Stefanovic plotted the podcast together and it launched in January to much fanfare, but after an interview with UK far-right figure Tommy Robinson, it all fell apart
Episodes of The Karl Stefanovic Show had already dried up before the escalating dispute with business partner Keshnee Kemp spilled into the courts.
The Daily Mail has contacted Stefanovic’s longtime manager, Sharon Finnigan, to ask when the podcast will return, and has also sought clarification from Nine as to whether the former Today host remains on the network’s books in any capacity.
With his reported Channel Nine payout due to run out at the end of the year, a looming buyout of Kemp’s stake and a potential payout tied to her directorship, Stefanovic could be facing a significant funding gap as he attempts to transition to a sole income stream from the podcast business.
Earlier this year, it emerged that Karl and Jasmine Stefanovic were undertaking an ambitious multimillion-dollar redevelopment of their Sydney north shore home.
The couple purchased the Castlecrag property for $3.2million in 2021 and secured approval three years later for a $4.5million rebuild featuring a lift, wine cellar, television equipment room, and dedicated storage spaces for surfboards, bicycles and tools.
They also own Villa Isabelle, a $3.6million holiday home at Sunshine Beach near Noosa.
Stefanovic’s Nine contract was due to expire in December. Before his departure, the former breakfast television king was widely believed to be Australia’s highest-paid TV presenter, earning an estimated $2.8million a year.
Stefanovic had planned to dump Keshnee Kemp in a meeting on September 18 and install his longtime manager Sharon Finnigan. (He is pictured with Finnigan at his 2018 wedding to Jasmine Yarbrough in Mexico)
At present, Stefanovic remains bound by directors’ duties, requiring him to act in the best interests of 123 Podcast Pty Ltd while the dispute remains unresolved.
He is understood to be taking advice from celebrity accountant and longtime friend Anthony Bell.
Should 123 Podcast ultimately be wound up following next month’s hearing before Justice Hammerschlag, industry figures speculate Stefanovic could simply launch a new entity to continue producing the show.
The situation stands in stark contrast to the optimism that accompanied the podcast’s launch in January.
At the time, Kemp said she was ‘proud’ of the venture, revealing the partnership with Stefanovic had grown from conversations during a holiday about a concept he had been considering for years.
‘He absolutely loves people, talking to people and bringing out the nuances and very human experience of their stories,’ she wrote.
The once-close relationship has since deteriorated dramatically. Kemp and Jasmine Stefanovic, who were childhood friends, have more recently unfollowed each other on social media, a small but telling sign of the widening rift.
