It has long been considered that lenders under a syndicated facility retain a right to seek to recover their portion of a loan directly following a payment default, typically by seeking the winding up of obligors. This is based on the several nature of the rights of finance parties which appears in clause 2 of the standard LMA terms.
The Court of Appeal has declined jurisdiction to wind up Yung Kee Holdings Limited (the "Company"), a company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands ("BVI"), upholding the decision of Harris J at first instance that the Company did not have "sufficient connection" with Hong Kong.
The new Hong Kong Companies Ordinance is planned to come into operation in the first quarter of 2014. This wholesale renovation of the law governing the operation of companies in Hong Kong repeals almost all of the existing provisions of the Companies Ordinance with a few exceptions, including the existing insolvency and winding-up provisions. These will remain in their current form and be retitled as the Companies (Winding Up and Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance.
Two guidance notes of relevance to the insurance industry were issued recently.
In 2016, the insolvency and bankruptcy landscape in India was radically overhauled by the introduction of the new Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). In addition to consolidating the complex set of existing laws and regulations on insolvency and bankruptcy into a single law, the IBC introduced time bound and creditor driven resolution process for distressed companies overseen by the newly formed National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
Supreme Court issued guidelines on bankruptcy and suspension of debt repayment – you might want to rethink your options.
The highest judiciary authority in Indonesia, the Supreme Court (Mahkamah Agung, MA), recently issued MA Decree No. 3/KMA/SK/I/2020 on the Guidelines on the Handling of Bankruptcy and Suspension of Debt Payment Proceedings (the Guideline). This Guideline sets out, among others:
The Italian Government has enacted Law Decree no. 23/2020, which was published in the Official Journal on April 8, 2020 and entered into force starting from April 9, 2020 (the "Decree"), introducing various new measures aimed, inter alia, at supporting companies affected financially by COVID-19 outbreak and shutdown in Italy. This newsflash outlines the measures rescheduling the entry into force of the Insolvency law regime and relaxing certain corporate law requirements, and looks at which companies will be eligible to take advantage of the new provisions.
Astaldi, the Italian multinational construction company, filed on Friday (28 September) for concordato in bianco. This is an in-court restructuring proceeding under the Italian Bankruptcy Law, which imposes a standstill period for up to six months. Astaldi’s reference to certain provisions in the Bankruptcy Law indicates that it intends to use the standstill period to prepare for a concordato preventivo filing.
Nearly a year ago, the Italian Parliament passed Law 155/2017 giving the Government twelve months to adopt a root and branch reform of the rules governing business distress and insolvency procedures, taking into account European legislation (EU Regulation 2015/848, Commission Recommendation 2014/135) and the principles of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law.
Another step towards a lender-friendly environment, but the new form of pledge is being delayed
The Italian Parliament passed law No. 155 of 19 October 2017 to delegate the Government to reform the rules on insolvency and financial distress. This has been commented widely in the press and between commentantors, as it is expected to bring about significant developments (we have previously reported here).