What is likely to be proposed?
What is the likely impact of these proposals?
Following the finance minister's speech proposing the Union Budget 2022, Parliament is likely to consider further amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016 (IBC) in 2022.
So far, the Bulgarian economy has encountered various COVID-19-related effects, but a surge in insolvencies is not yet one of them. Although the Bulgarian state was slow in implementing measures to help companies affected by the pandemic – which measures turned out to be insufficient – there has been no visible increase in bankruptcy proceedings since 2020.
There has been a longstanding need in Hungary for a legal instrument to rescue distressed companies. The only legal solution so far for such companies was the unpopular and inflexible bankruptcy procedure, which is also risky for the debtor, as failure will automatically turn into a liquidation proceeding and the company will cease to exist. Bankruptcy, with its formalistic procedures and limited involvement of creditors in the decision-making, has done more harm than good. It also usually stigmatised the debtor.
As of 17 July 2021 the EU restructuring directive1 was implemented in Austria by the new Austrian Restructuring Code (ReC). The ReC allows debtors to enter formal restructuring proceedings before actually becoming insolvent. To minimise the disruption to debtor's operations, the proceedings are not public, a ban on enforcement of collateral can be implemented and the rights of counterparts to amend or terminate existing contracts are significantly curtailed.
Following several civil appeals, the Supreme Court has decided in its final order and judgment dated 13 September 2021 (the judgment) whether a resolution plan that has already been approved by the requisite majority of the committee of creditors (CoC) and that is pending the approval of the adjudicating authority can be modified or withdrawn by a resolution applicant under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016 (the Code).