Headlines

The Zambian president has come under fire for the abrupt sacking of the central bank governor in the midst of a debt crisis in the southern African nation whose resolution hinges on bailout talks with the IMF, the Financial Times reported. Denny Kalyalya was fired with immediate effect by Edgar Lungu on Saturday without an official reason being given, at a critical juncture for Africa’s second-biggest copper producer which is struggling to repay more than $11bn of government debts. He was replaced with Christopher Mvunga, a former deputy finance minister and banker.

The Supreme Court on Monday reserved its order on the issue of recovery of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues of insolvent telcos, Mint reported. The apex court said it will also clarify additional liabilities, if any, of Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel on account of past dues on the spectrum they bought from Reliance Communications, Videocon and Aircel respectively. SC noted that if the seller of spectrum did not clear its dues before sale, the liabilities would be transferred to the buyer as per trading guidelines.

Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group has bought parts of rival DW Whelan Sports out of administration for £37m, but almost half of the 1,800 jobs at the retail and gym group will be lost, the Financial Times reported. Frasers, which owns Sports Direct, on Monday said the deal would focus on DW’s gym business — the second largest in the UK — as well as “certain stock” but that it would not buy the brand. The value of the transaction may rise by up to £6.9m depending on the number of associated lease holdings that Frasers acquires.

Travel agent STA Travel Group has gone into voluntary administration. It comes after the collapse of the travel group’s Swiss-based parent company STA Travel Holding AG, which filed for insolvency, Business Insider Australia reported. STA operates online travel agent services and 27 outlets in Australia, with Deloitte’s Jason Tracy and Timothy Norman appointed as administrators on August 21.

Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd’s unsecured creditors will receive an average return of 9-13% of their funds as part of U.S. private equity group Bain Capital’s proposed purchase of the airline, administrator Deloitte said in a report on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The unsecured creditors include 6,500 bondholders who are owed A$2 billion ($1.43 billion) by the country’s second-biggest airline and will receive a return of 8.4-12.8%, less than the 14.4% return for critical suppliers. Priority creditors and employees will receive 100% of funds owed, the report said.

When European countries ordered businesses to shutter and employees to stay home as the coronavirus spread, governments took radical steps to shield workers from the prospect of mass joblessness, extending billions to businesses to keep people employed, the International New York Times reported. The layoffs are coming anyway. A tsunami of job cuts is about to hit Europe as companies prepare to carry out sweeping downsizing plans to offset a collapse in business from the outbreak.

Colombian businesses on Monday asked the government to secure a loan from the central bank for between 30 trillion and 50 trillion pesos ($7.84 billion to $13.1 billion) to bail out companies at risk of collapse due to the impact of coronavirus, Reuters reported. Proposals include a rescue package in which companies could issue bonds for future conversion to shares, as well as a capitalization program under which the government would take part ownership of businesses, Colombian Business Association President Bruce Mac Master said.

As serial defaulters Argentina and Ecuador near the finishing line on their latest sovereign debt overhauls, foreign creditors are nervy about investing again without macroeconomic reforms and International Monetary Fund support, Reuters reported. On the surface, the prospects for both countries look brighter. Absent complicated negotiations with the IMF, a clean slate post-debt restructuring will allow them to focus on reviving their COVID-19-ravaged economies with much less concern about looming foreign debts to repay.

The Hong Kong-based cruise operator that spooked creditors this week by suspending all payments is still sailing a fully booked ship despite the crippling pandemic, in what may be one bright spot for the beleaguered firm seeking to revamp debt and raise fresh capital, Bloomberg News reported. About a month ago, Genting Hong Kong Ltd. restarted two- and three-day excursions around Taiwan, exclusively for residents of the island that’s seen success in containing the coronavirus outbreak.

Swissport has secured hundreds of millions of euros of financial backing from creditors, gaining a vote of confidence in its future as the travel sector is hard hit by the COVID-19 crisis, Reuters reported. The Swiss-based airport ground services firm said a comprehensive restructuring with lenders included 300 million euros ($353 million) in interim support and a 500 million euro long-term debt facility that will replace that initial backing.