The EU Commission issued a proposal for a Directive harmonising certain aspects of insolvency law, EU (COM(2022) 702 final. Although still being discussed, the Proposal is unlikely to result in material amendments to existing Bulgarian insolvency avoidance actions, which follows the principles set out in the Proposal and in many ways affords creditors a greater level of protection. Nevertheless, certain time periods and rules on the implementation of the avoidance actions may need to be amended in the Bulgarian law.

Regarding the draft Directive proposed by the European Commission that harmonises facets of insolvency law, it is worth noting that the draft Directive does not prevent EU member states from maintaining or adopting provisions that offer greater protection to creditors than those outlined in the Directive. Since the existing Croatian law framework on contestation rights provides numerous and detailed rules that go beyond the draft Directive, its implementation is not expected to require extensive or substantial modifications.

Insolvency proceedings and avoidance actions play a significant role in safeguarding creditors' interests and maximising the insolvency estate in Türkiye. The European Commission's Proposal for a Directive (COM (2022)702) aims to harmonise contestation rights in insolvency across EU member states. Although Türkiye is not an EU member states, Türkiye has similar avoidance actions regulated under its own insolvency legislation, the Turkish Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law (EBL).

Overview

On 7 December 2022, the European Commission published a draft directive aimed at harmonizing certain aspects of insolvency law. The intention behind this directive is to mandate the inclusion of "pre-pack proceedings" in national insolvency laws across the European Union ("EU"). Although Türkiye is not a member of the EU and does not have specific rules for governing pre-pack insolvency sales, it does have procedures that are similar, if not an identical, to pre-pack proceedings.

In this article we will take a closer look at Türkiye's pre-pack-like institution.

The pre-pack insolvency sale is not currently regulated under Bulgarian law.

The Bulgarian law currently regulates the implementation of a recovery plan as a stage of opened insolvency proceedings, such recovery plan may provide for the sale of the business as a going concern, or the sale of a business as a going concern prior to opening insolvency proceedings. The recovery plan is described in more detail below.

In late 2022, the European Commission proposed a new Directive with a view to harmonise certain aspects of insolvency law. One of the most important innovations to be introduced in this Draft Directive is pre-pack proceedings.

What is a pre-pack sale?

Only a year ago, Slovakia transposed EU Directive 2019/2023 on preventive restructuring frameworks with an intention to reform insolvency proceedings and make them more effective.

The Bulgarian government has introduced a new form of insolvency regime directed at merchants effective from 1 July 2023. In this new framework, a merchant is distinctly defined as an individual involved in business or practising a craft or a liberal profession. The criterion for the classification is the nature and scale of the operations, which should not necessitate conducting activities in a purely commercial manner.

The sale of portfolios of non-performing loans (NPLs) in Bulgaria is once again a hot topic. Lenders expect the percentage of work-out exposures to increase as the government's various stimulus packages come to an end. However, following a multitude of successful portfolio NPL sales in the years prior to COVID-19, more and more international investors are expressing interest in the local market.

What does this mean for NPL portfolio sales in Bulgaria?

There are several factors that will play a major role in the future of NPL portfolio sales in Bulgaria:

The insolvency systems for companies and other legal entities vary from country to country. The main purpose of insolvency legislation, however, is fundamentally the same worldwide. If there is important value in the business, we need to protect it in order for the company to continue as a viable business and pay creditors. If the liquidation value is higher than the operational value, jurisdictions have liquidation mechanisms that allow companies to efficiently exit the market and pay creditors through an ordered sale of assets.