A Hong Kong court has rejected a bid to force liquidators to provide information and documents regarding their plans and strategies on related litigation as well as information on legal costs and funding arrangements.

On 23 January 2024, the English Court of Appeal set aside the April 2023 order of the High Court sanctioning the English Part 26A restructuring plan (the “Plan”) proposed by AGPS BondCo plc (the “Plan Company”), a subsidiary of Adler Group SA (Adler Group SA and its subsidiaries being the "Adler Group"). The successful appeal was brought by an ad hoc group of holders of the Adler Group's 2029 notes (the "AHG"). The practical consequences of this decision for the Adler Group's restructuring remain to be seen.

New statutory provisions have come into effect that will modernise the way documents are filed with the Official Receiver in Hong Kong. The changes, which took place on the last working day of 2023, pave the way for the electronic submission of certain documents to the Official Receiver's Office (ORO) and dispense with the mandatory newspaper advertising of some statements and notices, which going forward will only require publication in the Gazette or other specified means.

Sovereign debt restructurings are complex processes that involve negotiations with a sovereign’s creditors to alter the terms of existing debt, aiming to restore fiscal sustainability and ensure long-term economic stability.

According to a recent report, nearly 6,000 construction companies in the UK are in danger of going out of business. In Hong Kong, a major contractor has lost its licence and was removed from the government's registered list of contractors on 16 November 2023, with the company being given only a month to settle five private residential and commercial projects. When construction companies become insolvent, a host of tricky legal and practical issues come into play.

A bleak picture

Key developments of interest over the last month include: IOSCO publishing its final Policy Recommendations for Crypto and Digital Asset (CDA) Markets; the UK government publishing a response to its previous consultation and call for evidence on proposals for the future financial services regulatory regime for digital assets as well as the FCA and Bank of England publishing proposals on the UK stablecoins regulatory regime; the European Parliament's ECON Committee publishing draft reports on the proposed PSD3 and Payment Services Regulation; and the UK government publishing a Future of Paym

Our review of 2023 brings you right up-to-date with the latest developments in restructuring and insolvency law in Hong Kong and the mainland.

2023 saw mixed messages for holders of offshore bonds issued by Chinese issuers hoping to enforce on the mainland, good news for lenders benefitting from “hybrid” jurisdiction clauses and a degree of uncertainty being seen in the Hong Kong courts as to whether an agreement to arbitrate should always take precedence over a winding up petition, particularly where cross-claims are involved.

While gaining recognition of Canadian insolvency proceedings south of the border used to be wishful thinking for an insolvent Canadian entity having involvement in the cannabis industry, such proceedings are now seemingly becoming a potential option. The United States Bankruptcy Court Central District of California Los Angeles Division (the “Court”) recently dismissed the United States Trustee’s (the “Trustee”) second motion to dismiss in The Hacienda Company, LLC’s (“THC”) bankruptcy proceedings.

Introduction

A few weeks ago, real estate practitioners, investors, speculators, lenders and aspiring homeowners were all surprised to learn that The One, a monster development at 1 Bloor St. West in Toronto, was being placed into receivership. The project undertaken by Sam Mizrahi and his company, Mizrahi Inc., is slated to be an 85-storey mixed-use residential tower in the heart of the city, comprising retail stores, a restaurant, a hotel and luxury residential suites. It would be an iconic addition to Toronto’s growing skyline…

On 14 March 2023, a new law (Tijdelijke wet transparantie turboliquidatie) was adopted by the Dutch legislator. This law introduces a filing obligation of the managing board that will apply to shortened liquidation procedures applied as per 15 November 2023. Under this obligation, the managing board of the company must file certain (financial) documents with the Dutch trade register and inform creditors of the company of this filing.