Beattie told the Brisbane Magistrates Court the first time he became aware of the alleged corruption was by the Crime and Misconduct Commission, ABC reported.
Talbot is facing 35 corruption charges relating to a $300,000 loan to Nuttall and a subsequent Beattie Government decision to finance a $20 million rail and road deviation to Macarthur Coal's Coppabella mine.
Both Nuttall and Talbot say they are innocent of any wrongdoing.
When details of the loan were made public in 2006, Nuttall claimed the payments were personal loans to buy houses for his three children.
Talbot took a leave of absence from Macarthur in November last year, leaving deputy CEO Nicole Hollows to take the reigns.
In court yesterday Beattie said ministers were required to keep an updated pecuniary interest register, but this had made no mention of the arrangement between Nuttall and Talbot, ABC reported.
