Prepack administrations - a U.K. process in which a business on the brink of insolvency is sold on without liabilities, such as debt - could become a feature of the European commercial mortgage-backed securities market, a conference heard Thursday, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. "I think you will see [CMBS deals] unwound quickly and cleanly through prepacks," Mark Nichol, CMBS analyst at Bank of AmericaMerrill Lynch, told a conference hosted by Fitch Ratings in London.

Germany's economy is growing. Global exports are booming. The euro is recovering. What's not to like? Plenty, according to a survey of German banks. Fully 60 percent fear that the euro crisis will worsen and jeopardize economic growth, Spiegel Online reported. According to the semi-annual "Bank Barometer" survey carried out by Ernst & Young in Germany, which was released on Thursday, only 39 percent of the 120 banks surveyed feel that the situation on the financial markets will improve in the next six months. In December, 65 percent thought it would.

The number of U.K. companies collapsing has fallen to pre-credit-crisis levels as firms and lenders work to manage liabilities and the economic recovery shows signs of trickling through to businesses, according to a new survey from financial-services firm Deloitte published Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported. The firm's analysis, which examined all U.K. administration figures, showed that 510 companies went into administration in the second quarter of 2010, 18% fewer than in the first quarter of the year. Administration is a procedure under U.K.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said strains in European financial markets are starting to ease, suggesting the ECB will continue to pare a program to help the region's most-vulnerable countries get back on their financial feet, The Wall Street Journal reported. Under the program, which was designed to jump-start dysfunctional segments of the financial markets, the ECB began purchasing government debt in May.

Former Anglo Irish Bank chairman Seán FitzPatrick is to ask the High Court to declare him bankrupt on Monday after he told the court the bank has blocked a proposed settlement deal with his creditors, The Irish Times reported. Mark Sanfey SC, counsel for Mr FitzPatrick, told the court today his client wanted to petition the court to be adjudicated bankrupt.

Bankrupt German aluminum maker Almatis BV is considering a new refinancing proposal from its owner Dubai International Capital LLC, but Almatis senior debtholder Oaktree Capital Management urged the judge to stick to the original reorganization plan, Reuters reported. In a letter dated Wednesday to Judge Martin Glenn, who is overseeing the case, Almatis' attorney said he had received a proposal from Dubai International Capital, or DIC, to pay off the company's senior debt in full.

The Spanish government will approve Friday an overhaul of savings-bank regulations, opening the door to private ownership of the mutually owned savings banks or "cajas," Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero said Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported. "This is the most important reform ever of our banking system," Mr. Zapatero said at a meeting with journalists. With close ties to local communities and often controlled by local governments, Spain's cajas have borne the brunt of the collapse of Spain's decade-long housing boom.

The Morrison Hotel on Ormond Quay, Dublin, is to be run by a provisional liquidator after the hotel's operating company withdrew its defence against a claim by the receiver for €5.7 million in unpaid rent, InsolvencyJournal.ie reported. Mr Justice Brian McGovern entered the judgement against the Morrison Hotel Ltd in the High Court and appointed a liquidator to the firm on the grounds that it was unable to repay the debt.

A group of bondholders representing the debt of insolvent German retailer Karstadt's properties has called a special meeting in London for July 28 to discuss some of the terms of the takeover offer for Karstadt proposed by billionaire investor Nicholas Berggruen, according to a notice from the group reviewed by Dow Jones.

The European Parliament agreed to what officials described as the world's strictest rules on bankers' bonuses, capping big cash awards across the European Union in time for 2010 payouts, The Wall Street Journal reported. The new law, agreed upon Wednesday, will limit upfront cash to 30% of a banker's total bonus and to 20% in the case of very large bonuses. Between 40% to 60% of bonuses will have to be deferred for at least three years and can be clawed back if the recipient's investments perform badly.