The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it has reached a settlement with the bankrupt crypto company Voyager over the company’s alleged deceptive crypto marketing practices. Specifically, the FTC’s complaint alleges that from at least 2018 until its declaration of bankruptcy in July 2022, Voyager enticed consumers with promises that their deposits were insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and were “safe.” However, consumers’ deposits with Voyager were not eligible for FDIC insurance and were not protected in the event that Voyager failed.

October, 2023 For Private Circulation - Educational & Informational Purpose Only A BRIEFING ON LEGAL MATTERS OF CURRENT INTEREST KEY HIGHLIGHTS * Supreme Court: Dissenting opinion of an arbitrator cannot be treated as an award if the majority award is set aside. * Delhi High Court: When there are two interconnected agreements with conflicting arbitration clauses, the clause contained in the main agreement should be given primacy. * Supreme Court: Admission of claims after the resolution plan has been accepted by CoC would result in making CIRP prolonged and inefficacious.

In a significant decision, the NCLAT in the case of Agarwal Polysacks Ltd. vs K. K. Agro Foods & Storage has recently held that a written financial contract is not the only basis for proving the financial debt. Financial debt can be proved from other relevant documents such as the balance sheet entries of the financial creditor, the corporate debtor’s balance sheet and the Form 26AS showing TDS deductions on the interest.

Brief Facts

In a recent decision the NCLAT, in the case of IDBI Trusteeship Services Ltd. vs. Direct Media Distribution Ventures Pvt. Ltd. held that even if the creditor realizes certain amounts after the original date of default / invocation, the date of a subsequent demand notice (for the adjusted amount) cannot be treated as the “date of default” for purposes of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (“IBC”).

Brief Facts

On October 3, 2023, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (“MCA”) issued a notification exempting transactions, arrangements or agreements under the Cape Town Convention (as defined below), relating to aircraft, aircraft engines, airframes and helicopters from moratorium under Section 14(1) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (“IBC”) (“Notification”).

Industrial and manufacturing businesses face all kinds of challenges: pricing and competitive pressures; regulatory demands; cross-border trade regulations and obligations; and litigation risk stemming from environmental and tort claims. These challenges create risks around every corner, some even rising to the level of "bet-the-company" issues – the things that keep GCs up at night.

After the tumult of the past few years, with emergency legislation being introduced to mitigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the last few months have felt relatively quiet in terms of new legislation. That said, there have been a number of important government publications in relation to the insolvency industry, and it appears that change is on the horizon.

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (“MCA”) issued a notification on October 03, 2023 under Section 14(3)(a) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (“IBC”), exempting the applicability of moratorium under Section 14(1) of the IBC to transactions, arrangements or agreements under the Cape Town Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment (“Convention”) and the Protocol to the Convention on Inte

The Grand Court of the Cayman Islands has recently dismissed a petition for the appointment of restructuring officers pursuant to the restructuring regime introduced in the Cayman Islands in August 2022. The case provides helpful clarification of the nature of evidence that is required to be put before the Court to engage its jurisdiction to appoint restructuring officers and will allow companies to be better prepared when seeking to utilise the Cayman Islands restructuring regime with the benefit of the automatic moratorium.

Summary

Trustees in bankruptcy can often come up against challenges in dealing with obstructive bankrupts. A bankrupt might ignore communications and requests for interview, fail to disclose information about their assets, or provide partial cooperation which fails to offer any substantive assistance.