On 16 March 2021, the German Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht, or BaFin) declared Greensill Bank AG (Greensill) to be an indemnification case, meaning that German deposit insurance institutions can compensate the bank’s creditors.
BaFin had previously filed an insolvency petition against Greensill, and the insolvency court in Bremen opened insolvency proceedings on 16 March 2021. It appointed an insolvency administrator who is now responsible for managing Greensill’s affairs.
Business Secretary Alok Sharma has announced that the government will be introducing measures to “improve the legal options for companies running into major difficulties. The overriding objective is to help UK companies, which need to undergo a financial rescue or restructuring process, to keep trading. These measures will give those firms extra time and space to weather the storm and be ready when the crisis ends”.1
The temporary amendments to the insolvency laws which are being considered include:
The High Court decision in Re All Star Leisure (Group) Limited (2019), which confirmed the validity of an administration appointment by a qualified floating charge holder (QFCH) out of court hours by CE-Filing, will be welcomed.
The decision accepted that the rules did not currently provide for such an out of hours appointment to take place but it confirmed it was a defect capable of being cured and, perhaps more importantly, the court also stressed the need for an urgent review of the rules so that there is no doubt such an appointment could be made.
The new EU Directive on preventive restructuring frameworks1 was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 26 June 2019 and entered into force on 16 July 2019. The objective of the Directive is to harmonize the laws and procedures of EU member states concerning preventive restructurings, insolvency and the discharge of debt.
In certain circumstances, if a claim is proven, the defendant will be able to offset monies that are due to it from the claimant - this is known as set off.
Here, we cover the basics of set off, including the different types of set off and key points you need to know.
What is set off?
Where the right of set off arises, it can act as a defence to part or the whole of a claim.
In our update this month we take a look at some recent decisions that will be of interest to those involved in insolvency litigation. These include:
Creditor not obliged to take steps in foreign proceedings to preserve security
No duty of care owed for negligent bank reference to undisclosed principal
The Supreme Court has held that a bank which negligently provided a favourable credit reference for one of its customers did not owe a duty of care to an undisclosed principal who acted on that reference.
There has been a series of high profile tenant company voluntary arrangements (CVAs), particularly in the retail and casual dining sectors. Many landlords have been hit by closure of underperforming stores, and by rent cuts on those remaining open. Here we outline ten points for landlords on what CVAs are, how they are entered into and what landlords can do to protect themselves.
What is a CVA?
A CVA is a statutory process, supervised by an insolvency practitioner. It allows a company in financial difficulty to:
In our update this month we take a look at some of the recent cases that will be of interest to those involved in insolvency litigation. These include: