Halliwells has filed a second notice of intention to appoint an administrator in a bid to buy more time to secure a sale of the firm without entering into administration, Legal Week reported. The notice was filed 7 July which will allow the firm until 20 July to conclude any potential deals with other firms. The notice will provide a moratorium on Halliwells' liabilities.

Jim Mansfield’s high-profile Citywest Hotel, conference centre and golf complex in Saggart, Co Dublin, has been placed into receivership by Bank of Scotland (Ireland), The Irish Times reported. The bank yesterday appointed Martin Ferris of Ferris Associates as receiver to HSS, which trades as the Citywest Hotel, Conference Centre, Leisure and Golf Resort. The appointment also includes the assets of Jeffel, a land-holding company. The large Citywest site includes 1,712 bedrooms, two golf courses, two conference centres and a helipad.

New Barcelona president Sandro Rosell has rubbished reports suggesting the Spanish giants face bankruptcy, though he did express concerns about the club's contract with financially stricken TV partner Mediapro, ESPN reported. Rosell's announcement on Barca's official website outlines plans to take out a €150 million loan to help pay staff and player wages, amid reports that Mediapro are in receivership and may not be able to honour a €1 billion TV rights deal that runs until 2013.

Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd is tipped to today seal its $55 million acquisition of electrical and whitegoods retailer Clive Peeters Ltd, which is in voluntary administration, Fairfax Media reported. Around $38 million of the purchase price, which will buy clearance centres and some warehouses as well as the retail stores, will be used to repay National Australia Bank Ltd, which is Clive Peeters' sole secured creditor. Unsecured creditors are expected to receive around 30 cents in the dollar, with total claims thought to be between $48.5 million and $70 million, according to Fairfax.

As debt-laden European governments push in on measures to cut spending and raise funds, a number of countries are preparing to accelerate efforts to sell public property, The Wall Street Journal reported. European countries for years have been selling public assets such as office buildings and residential units in order to raise money.

Iceland’s lenders may lose as much as $4.3 billion, equivalent to a third of the economy, after a court last month found that some foreign loans were illegal, said Finance Minister Steingrimur J. Sigfusson, Bloomberg reported. “This is the largest single loan category of the banks, with a value of between 800 billion kronur and 900 billion kronur ($7.2 billion),” Sigfusson said.

The deadline for bids for Italian fashion house Gianfranco Ferre, one of Milan's top designer names, was extended to Aug. 2 to give latecomer foreign bidders time to prepare an offer, a source close to the sale said, Reuters reported. A call for bids for the fashion house, known for its "architectural" style in suits, was set to expire on Tuesday. In a statement on Monday, the special commissioners running parent company IT Holding, which went into administration in February 2009 after it ran out of cash, said the deadline for Ferre's auction was postponed to Aug.

What do Europe’s bank stress tests need to succeed? The question is critical because many analysts think that they offer an opportunity for the euro zone to move beyond the crisis in which it has been enveloped since the start of the year, The Wall Street Journal Real Time Brussels blog reported in an analysis. In a research note out today, analysts at Morgan Stanley say success requires three components: Transparency. Opening up about the state of banks–”on a country-by-country and bank-by-bank basis”– is more important than making dire economic assumptions.

Italy’s debt, the highest in the euro region last year, remains a “potential time bomb” and the country is at risk of default unless it boosts productivity, Capital Economics said, Bloomberg Businessweek reported. “We think the size of the government’s debts will eventually prompt the markets to turn their sights on Italy,” Capital Markets Managing Director Roger Bootle and chief European economist Jonathan Loynes said in a report today.

Problems with its overseas operations have contributed to forcing Asian restaurant chain Mao into receivership, the Irish Times reported. AIB has appointed Kenneth Fennell of corporate restructuring specialists Kavanagh Fennell as receiver to the company, which operates three restaurants in Dublin. The business is continuing to trade under its existing management and is seeking a buyer or new investor. In recent years, the group opened restaurants in Cape Town in South Africa, which is closed; and in Glasgow, Scotland, which is for sale.