A high-profile separation in Sydney's eastern suburbs has rippled through a tightly knit social group, with friendships described as "seismic" and two new romances intensifying divisions among acquaintances.
Nicholas and Litsa Stavropoulos quietly ended their marriage earlier this year, and, according to reporting in the Daily Mail, Nicholas subsequently began a relationship with Pembe Bekir, a former close friend of his ex-wife. The development prompted a sharp social fallout among a group of four couples who had been described by friends as inseparable for years.
Friends told the Daily Mail that the Stavropouloses and the Bekirs were once part of a single social circle that holidayed and socialised together. "Pembe and Deniz, and Nic and Litsa, were the best of friends. They went on holiday together, they socialised together — they were inseparable," a friend said. Those connections frayed after the separations. Litsa Stavropoulos has posted private Instagram memes that friends interpret as signalling feelings of betrayal; one widely noted post read, "When people show you who they are, believe them." Pembe Bekir has made her Instagram account private.
People close to the group said the breakup has real social costs. A source confirmed to the Daily Mail that Nicholas and Bekir spent time together in Europe this year, with reports saying they were in Greece and Spain for about eight weeks in June and July. The relationship has reportedly strained longstanding friendships, including between Bekir and couture bridalwear designer Lillian Khallouf.
The personal drama has coincided with renewed attention to past controversies involving Stavropoulos. In early 2020, his travel wholesaler Excite Holidays collapsed owing more than $35 million to creditors, a collapse that KPMG said made any return to unsecured creditors "extremely unlikely." Reports at the time said staff were advised to switch off phones over a holiday period to avoid calls from agents and that bookings were accepted through January 8, 2020 despite hotels and airlines not being paid. Excite's directors, including Stavropoulos, later expressed "deep regret" over the collapse.
Despite the business failure, Nicholas and Litsa continued to appear publicly affluent. In August 2023, the Daily Telegraph reported that Stavropoulos hosted a masked ball for Litsa's 50th birthday at the State Library of New South Wales, with costs reported in excess of $100,000. Images shared by Litsa from the same year showed the couple aboard a superyacht in the Greek islands.
The social fallout widened when Deniz Bekir, Pembe Bekir's ex-husband and a long-time friend of Stavropoulos, was photographed on holiday in August with Linda Rogan, a beauty entrepreneur well-known in the eastern suburbs. Near-identical Instagram photos from Ibiza’s Destino Pacha resort, showing both seated with glasses of wine at sunset, fuelled speculation that the pair were romantically linked. Rogan, who is 53 and a mother of three, returned to Sydney in August.
Rogan has been a public figure beyond social circles in the east. She brought Federal Court proceedings in a widely covered dispute with WiseTech founder Richard White, claiming he had promised a $13.1 million Vaucluse mansion and later withdrew the arrangement after his wife became aware of their relationship. Rogan also sought payment for luxury furniture she said she had purchased for the property. The matter was settled, and a spokesman for White said the settlement was to avoid distraction from his business priorities.
People close to the parties described the split as shifting alliances that have left some former friends on opposite sides. One friend said many in the social group have rallied around Litsa Stavropoulos, who remains a prominent figure in the eastern suburbs.
Those involved have offered limited public comment. Reported timelines place the collapse of Excite Holidays in January 2020, lavish public events for the Stavropouloses in 2023, and the couple's separation in early 2025, followed by the reported new relationships in mid-2025. Social media posts and vacation photos have played a role in the unfolding narrative, underscoring how personal developments among public figures are amplified in Sydney's high-society circles.
The events illustrate how private breakups and subsequent relationships can reverberate through social networks, particularly where long-standing friendships, business controversies and public profiles intersect. Representatives for the individuals named did not provide comment to the Daily Mail story. The matters recounted here are drawn from reporting in the Daily Mail and from social media posts by the people involved.