Japan Airlines Corp., the first major Asian flag carrier to file for bankruptcy, has its last trading day in Tokyo today, wiping out shareholders in a company that was worth more than $6 billion as recently as March, BusinessWeek reported. The carrier will be officially delisted tomorrow after seeking court protection with 2.32 trillion yen ($26 billion) of debts last month. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama forced the bankruptcy in return for backing a $10 billion turnaround for Tokyo-based JAL, the recipient of at least four state bailouts in less than a decade.

Willcom Inc. will file for bankruptcy protection with the Tokyo District Court on Thursday, initiating a pre-negotiated rebuilding process that will tap taxpayer money, the Nikkei business daily said. The personal handyphone system (PHS) service provider's rehabilitation efforts will be sponsored by Softbank Corp and investment fund Advantage Partners LLP, the paper said.

Japan Airlines Corp. won U.S. court protection while it reorganizes through its main bankruptcy case in Tokyo, BusinessWeek reported on a Bloomberg story. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James Peck in Manhattan today granted the Tokyo-based airline Chapter 15 protection in Manhattan court, giving Japan Air a shield against U.S. lawsuits and helping it to organize U.S. creditors’ claims. In operation since 1951, Japan Airlines is the largest domestic carrier in Japan and filed the country’s fourth-biggest bankruptcy. The company’s Jan.

Japan Airlines Corp plans to cut employee pay by 5 percent from April and eliminate bonuses in fiscal 2010 in an attempt to swiftly turn around its business, the Nikkei business daily reported. The proposed wage cuts are the first detailed restructuring plans to come out of JAL since the company filed for bankruptcy in January and was placed under the oversight of the state-backed Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corp. of Japan, the daily reported.

JSC Alliance Bank, the sixth-largest bank in Kazakhstan by net loans, filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy to protect itself from U.S. lawsuits and creditor claims while it reorganizes at home, BusinessWeek reported on a Bloomberg story. The Almaty-based company listed both debt and assets of more than $1 billion in documents filed today in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan. JSC “experienced severe liquidity difficulties” following the worldwide financial crisis, according to the papers.

Irish software firm First Derivatives has bought Cognotec Holdings Ltd in a deal worth up to $4.7 million (€3.5 million). Cognotec was placed into receivership on January 22nd, The Irish Times reported. The terms of the purchase comprise a cash payment of $4.7 million, $500,000 of which will be held in escrow pending delivery of certain agreements by the receiver following completion. The purchase will be paid for in cash from the company’s existing banking facilities. Cognotec has operations in Dublin, London, New York, Singapore and Tokyo.

New Zealand-owned kitchen and appliance chain Autel is in receivership after being buffeted by the housing downturn and pressure from big international chains, The New Zealand Herald reported. Kerryn Downey and William Black of McGrathNicol have been appointed receivers and managers of three companies that sell imported kitchen and laundry goods: Autel TV Services Limited, Lifestyle Appliances (2004) Limited and Prestige Appliances NZ Limited.

The European Union is in need of a new economic strategy, The Wall Street Journal reported. The veracity of that statement might seem indisputable, as various EU countries, led by Greece, struggle to avoid being crushed by their accumulated debts. But in the surreal bureaucratic thinking of the EU, the reason it needs a new economic strategy has as much to do with the fact that its previous one is nearing its expiry date as any desperate need to deal with the current crisis. In March 2000, the EU set out its strategy for the next decade. It wasn't unambitious.

JAL, Asia's largest carrier by revenue, which filed for bankruptcy protection to pursue turnaround efforts under the auspices of the ETIC, needs around 600 billion yen in bridge loans, the Nikkei said. The business daily said the Development Bank of Japan is expected to extend a total of 300 billion yen in bridge loans, up from the initial estimate of 200 billion yen. The remaining 355 billion yen will be provided by the ETIC.

Jean-Claude Trichet, the European Central Bank president, is returning early from a conference in Australia to take part in a summit meeting of European leaders this week, amid speculation over possible action to ease the debt crisis several countries are facing, The New York Times reported. Mr. Trichet will attend the meeting Thursday of the European Council called by Herman Van Rompuy, the bloc’s first full-time president, an E.C.B. spokesman said Tuesday. He said Mr. Trichet was only invited to the meeting on Monday. The E.C.B.