Austrian former billionaire Rene Benko went on trial on Tuesday in the first case connected to the collapse of his property group Signa, which at its peak acquired stakes in New York's Chrysler Building and British department-store chain Selfridges, Reuters reported. Signa became the biggest casualty of Europe's property downturn when some of its main units filed for insolvency in 2023. Prosecutors are conducting a sprawling investigation into possible crimes committed, and estimate the related damage caused at around 300 million euros ($348 million).

Vijay Mallya, wanted in India to face trial on fraud and money laundering charges, has discontinued an application to annul a UK bankruptcy order ahead of a planned hearing in London on Monday, IndiaToday.com reported. It means the "Trustee in Bankruptcy" can continue to pursue assets to help a consortium of banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI) realise the repayment of an estimated judgment debt of around 1.05 billion pounds owed by the 69-year-old's now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.

Indonesian shrimp packer Panca Mitra Multi Perdana (PMMP) has agreed to pay outstanding wages and severance to hundreds of laid-off staff after the local government said that it would declare the business bankrupt, reports Antara reported. PMMP was under scrutiny in September after more than 200 former employees reported not receiving wages, severance pay and other entitlements following layoffs, as Undercurrent News reported.

Former senator Linda Reynolds has launched bankruptcy proceedings in the Australian Federal Court against her ex-staffer Brittany Higgins as she tries to recover damages awarded to her for defamation, ABC.net.au reported. In August Ms Higgins was ordered to pay Ms Reynolds $315,000 plus $26,000 in interest after she and her husband David Sharaz were found to have defamed the former senator in a series of social media posts. Ms Higgins was also ordered to pay 80 per cent of Ms Reynolds's legal costs.

The number of corporate bankruptcies involving liabilities of ¥10 million or more in Japan in the April-September period has hit the highest level in 12 years, partly due to labor shortages, Tokyo Shoko Research said on Wednesday, the Japan Times reported. In the first half of fiscal 2025, which began in April, business failures rose 1.5% from a year earlier to 5,172, up for the fourth consecutive year. The figure was close to the 5,505 recorded in the same period of fiscal 2013.

Solar glass producer Haikong Sanxin New Energy Materials will apply for bankruptcy to curb mounting losses, in the latest sign of the financial difficulties facing the solar industry in China, home to around 80% of global production, Reuters reported. Haikong Sanxin posted a net loss of 194.5 yuan ($27.3 million) for January-June 2025 and 659 million yuan in debt, parent company Hainan Development Holdings Nankai said in a filing on Thursday.

The Philippine central bank delivered a fourth straight rate cut, surprising markets as it flagged a weaker growth outlook, the Wall Street Journal reported. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas cut its benchmark overnight reverse repurchase rate by 25 basis points to 4.75% from 5.00% on Thursday. It also lowered its benchmark lending rate to 5.25% from 5.50%. Backing the case for easing: a seven-month streak of below-target inflation and sluggish economic growth. The central bank said in a statement that the outlook for domestic growth has weakened.