Businesses worldwide are feeling the pressure of historic inflation and rising interest rates. UK insolvencies have reached their highest level since 2009, while numbers are also increasing in Australia, Canada and China.
This article examines the latest restructuring and insolvency trends – including zombie companies, landmark court decisions, and new legislation in Canada and the EU.
‘Zombie companies’ could lead to a wave of insolvencies
On 12 July 2023, the Legislative Council enacted the Bankruptcy and Companies Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 2023, a transformative initiative to modernise the filing and notice processes under the Bankruptcy Ordinance (Cap 6) and the Companies (Winding-Up and Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance (Cap 32). With the amendments, the Official Receiver’s Office (ORO) introduces the Electronic Submission System (ESS) to bring the ORO and insolvencies into the 21st century.
Changes effective from 29 December 2023
最高人民法院与香港律政司在2019年1月18日共同签署了《关于内地与香港特别行政区法院相互认可和执行民商事案件判决的安排》（“《新安排》”）。在香港方面，《新安排》需透过本地法律实施，根据香港政府2023年11月10日的宪报，《内地民商事判决（相互强制执行）条例》（第645章）以及《内地民商事判决（相互强制执行）规则》将于2024年1月29日生效。在内地方面，我们预期最高人民法院亦将近期颁布相关司法解释。依照双方共识，《新安排》会于2024年1月29日在两地同步实施。
《关于内地与香港特别行政区法院相互认可和执行当事人协议管辖的民商事案件判决的安排》（“《旧安排》”）将在《新安排》生效之日废止（第30条第1款）。但《新安排》生效前，当事人已签署《旧安排》所称“书面管辖协议”的，仍适用《旧安排》（第30条第2款）。
《新安排》的生效落地，将大大提高两地法院判决被互相认可和执行的便利性。据最高人民法院估计，新安排实施后内地与香港两地法院90%左右的民商事案件判决将有望得到相互认可和执行。
有鉴于此，我们希望分享《新安排》生效后的一些实务要点和操作流程概览，期待与业界交流探讨。
Hong Kong is the only common law jurisdiction within the People’s Republic of China and one of the few financial centres in the world without a formal rescue mechanism in its legislation. Hong Kong has not enacted legislation to recognise corporate rescue over simple liquidation.
The Hong Kong court has granted an order forcing an uncooperative former director of a Hong Kong listed company to ratify the appointment of a Hong Kong liquidator as the sole director of the companies' four BVI subsidiaries. The court rejected the idea that the liquidators should be made to apply for fresh winding up orders in the BVI and stressed that courts should be ready to offer each other mutual assistance.
Key takeaways
In FamilyMart China Holding Co Ltd (Respondent) v Ting Chuan (Cayman Islands) Holding Corporation (Appellant) (Cayman Islands) [2023] UKPC 33, the Privy Council has provided useful guidance about the interplay between an arbitration agreement and exercise of the Cayman court’s powers and discretion to wind up a company on just and equitable grounds.
Where a winding up petition is based on a debt arising from a contract with a non-Hong Kong exclusive jurisdiction clause, the court will tend to dismiss or stay the winding up petition in favour of the parties’ agreed forum unless there are strong countervailing factors.
The Singapore High Court has again confirmed that a winding-up application concerning a disputed debt that is subject to an arbitration agreement will be dismissed if the arbitration agreement is prima facie valid and covers the dispute. This prima facie standard of review was first formulated three years ago by the Singapore Court of Appeal in AnAn Group (Singapore) Pte Ltd v VTB Bank (Public Joint Stock Company) [2020] SCGA 33.