Germany

Germany is backing proposals to give new powers and lending capacity to the €440bn ($577bn) eurozone rescue fund, even if that means increasing its financial guarantees, according to people familiar with the issue in Berlin and Brussels, the Financial Times reported. Such a move would be part of a package of measures, including greater co-ordination of economic policymaking between the 17 eurozone members, that could be agreed by European Union heads of government at their next summit in February.

Harles and Jentzsch, a manufacturer accused of supplying dioxin-laced fat to the animal-feed industry in Germany, filed in court for insolvency on Wednesday, Monsters and Critics reported. The company, based in Uetersen, north-west of Hamburg, is under investigation by prosecutors and may also potentially face vast civil claims from 5,000 German farms that were idled during the dioxin scare that blew up last week. A spokeswoman for the state court in Itzehoe, Julia Gaertner, said the company had filed for protection from its creditors.

The four main creditors in German cable provider Primacom have agreed to cancel 250 million euros ($328.6 million) worth of loans in return for equity, two sources familiar with the restructuring told Reuters on Thursday, sending Primacom's share price soaring. The shares leapt more than ninefold to 1.99 euros at 1545 GMT after the sources revealed that creditors Alcentra, Tennenbaum Capital, Avenue Capital and the Dutch bank ING finalised the deal that would give them full control of Primacom.

German lingerie group Schiesser has emerged from insolvency proceedings as it prepares to float on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in the second quarter of 2011, according to a company statement issued on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The family-founded company filed for insolvency almost two years ago and first voiced plans to float in 2010. Schiesser said insolvency administrator Volker Grub would join the supervisory board and hand over the running of the company to the new executive board, which includes Rudolf Buendgen, Karl-Achim Klein and Johannes Molzberger.

Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $553 million and admit to criminal wrongdoing yesterday, settling a long-running investigation into tax shelter fraud that prosecutors say generated billions of dollars in bogus tax benefits, the New York Times reported today. In an agreement with the United States Attorney’s Office in Manhattan, Deutsche Bank will avoid prosecution for helping 2,100 customers evade taxes through 2,300 financial transactions.

Creditors of Conergy have agreed to a debt restructuring of the German solar company, which would likely hand over control to hedge funds Sothic Capital and York through a debt-for-equity swap, Reuters reported yesterday. The company said on Friday that it plans to reduce its capital stock by 88 percent, virtually wiping out existing shareholders, in order to then raise fresh equity amounting to as much as 188 million euros ($250.2 million). By taking a stake of nearly 70 percent in exchange, Conergy's credit burden would be reduced from a current 323 million euros to just 135 million euros.

Creditors of Conergy are close to clinching a debt restructuring deal under which hedge funds York and Sothic Capital could gain control of the ailing solar company, two people familiar with the matter said, Reuters reported. "Both parties are very close to an agreement," one person said, adding that a breakdown of talks between banks and hedge funds was no longer an option. Under to the deal, York and Sothic will own more than 70 percent in Conergy, while the current 29.08-percent stake of major shareholder Commerzbank will be reduced to about 9 percent, the people said.

Deutsche Telekom AG and Vivendi SA Wednesday settled a years-long legal battle over Polish mobile-phone operator Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa, or PTC, giving the German company sole ownership and freeing up more cash for Vivendi to spend on buying out minority stakes in its domestic subsidiaries, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. Under the settlement, Deutsche Telekom will pay another EUR1.4 billion ($1.9 billion) in total to Vivendi and Polish conglomerate Elektrim SA, which as a result of the payment will exit bankruptcy proceedings, giving Deutsche Tekekom 100% ownership.

Leading German biodiesel producer EOP Biodiesel AG said on Tuesday it had declared insolvency, Reuters reported. The company said in a statement it had been unable to reach agreement with its banks about finance. EOP produces 132,000 tonnes of biodiesel annually at a plant in Pritzwalk in eastern Germany. In October, the company stopped biodiesel production following damage to a gear unit at its oil mill. Read more.

Germany's Schiesser AG said Monday a relevant local district court has approved its insolvency plan, removing the last obstacle to the company's planned initial public offering, or IPO, Nasdaq.com reported on a Dow Jones story. In November, the lingerie, sportswear and swimwear company said it aimed to list in the prime standard segment of the German stock exchange, naming equinet Bank AG and private bank BHF-Bank as joint lead managers and joint bookrunners of the IPO.