Headlines

Wirecard inked a deal to sell its operations in Brazil, its insolvency administrator said on Friday, the first asset of global operations to sell after the company collapsed amid an accounting scandal earlier this year, Reuters reported. An agreement in principle has also been reached to sell some operations in Britain, and the process of selling its North American operations are well advanced with a deal expected “shortly”, the administrator said.

Troubled Peking University Founder Group Corp’s (PUFG) administrator is not recognising the keepwell deed the Chinese conglomerate provided for a $300 million dollar bond issued by Nuoxi Capital, financial intelligence provider Redd reported, Reuters reoprted. Keepwell deeds are used by some Chinese companies to facilitate offshore bond sales by their subsidiaries. The deeds are similar, according to lawyers, to “letters of support” where the issuer would be backed by an onshore company, but they stopped short of guaranteeing the debt.

An Indian court has agreed to hear a petition by the nation’s largest lender seeking to initiate personal bankruptcy against tycoon Anil Ambani after the former billionaire failed to repay debt, Bloomberg News reported. A two-member panel of the National Company Law Tribunal, or NCLT, in Mumbai has appointed a bankruptcy administrator to verify a claim by State Bank of India, or SBI, that Ambani offered about $160 million of personal guarantees while seeking loans in 2016 for his now insolvent Reliance Communications Ltd.

New measures to allow Indian lenders to restructure loans will provide a “durable” resolution for cash-strapped businesses and help revive the economy, according to the central bank’s chief, Bloomberg News reported. “On one hand health of banks is very important and on the other hand businesses are under a lot of stress due to covid,” Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das Das said in an interview with CNBC-Awaaz on Friday. The plan has replaced a blanket loan moratorium that’s due to expire later this month, he said.

Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd bondholders have withdrawn plans for a proposed recapitalisation of the airline that was meant to rival one from U.S. private equity firm Bain Capital, a spokesman for the bondholders said on Friday, Reuters reported. Singapore’s Broad Peak and Hong Kong’s Tor Investment Management, which had proposed the rival deed of company arrangement (DOCA) to recapitalise the airline, hold around A$300 million ($216 million) of Virgin’s A$2 billion of unsecured bonds, part of nearly A$7 billion owed to creditors.

South African mobile operator Cell C said on Friday it expects to close around 128 stores across the country, more than half of its retail footprint, with 546 jobs on the line as it seeks to cut costs and restructure its operations, Reuters reported. The job cuts will be in addition to Cell C’s plans to lay off 960 workers, announced in June. “The retail environment has changed and this has been fast-tracked by the impact of COVID-19 and the evolving purchasing habits of consumers,” Cell C, which is not listed and is 45% owned by Blue Label Telecoms, said in a statement.

Thailand’s fiscal policy should play a greater role to help the economy recover from the impact of the coronavirous pandemic, the central bank governor said on Friday, with the benchmark interest rate at a record low, Reuters reported. The Bank of Thailand (BOT) will focus on assisting with debt restructuring, Veerathai Santiprabhob told reporters after the launch of a debt restructuring programme for businesses. “In such critical condition, the one who is capable of stimulating the economy is the government...

China’s fragile economic recovery is ushering in a dangerous new phase for the nation’s $4.1 trillion corporate bond market, Bloomberg News reported. With the economy now strong enough for policy makers to dial back financial support but still too weak to save the most distressed borrowers, some fund managers are bracing for defaults on domestic Chinese debt to hit record highs this year. Delinquencies have already started rising after a remarkably quiet second quarter, and pressure on borrowers is set to grow as 3.65 trillion yuan ($529 billion) of notes mature by year-end.

Dutch retailer Hema filed for Chapter 15 court protection in the U.S. in the latest step of a debt restructuring as the popular local firm prepares for its sale, Bloomberg News reported. Chapter 15 shields foreign companies from lawsuits by U.S. creditors while they reorganize in another country. The filing came late Wednesday, the same day that Hema’s restructuring plan received support from the vast majority of its senior-ranking bondholders in a U.K. court process.

Payments processor Adyen NV reported slower earnings growth on Thursday, as transactions at online retailers increased but travel industry customers payments fell due to the coronavirus pandemic, Reuters reported. A spokesman said the Dutch company, which handles customer payments for the likes of Uber, Facebook and Netflix, had gained new customers after the June collapse of German rival Wirecard, but the impact on revenue and earnings was negligible.