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The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has permitted John Energy, a debt-ridden firm facing insolvency proceedings before the NCLT, to deposit Rs 254 crore along with 12 per cent interest as per the One Time Settlement (OTS) with its lenders ICICI Bank and Axis Bank, the Economic Times of India reported. The tribunal also said that the bank's plea to initiate insolvency proceedings is still pending before NCLT, it would be for the lower court to take a call on the submissions and offer made by John Energy.

Listed aviation group Esken is to appoint adminstrators after concluding its proposed restructuring plan has "ceased to be commercially viable," InsiderMedia.com reported. One of Esken's main assets is London Southend Airport and the business is progressing a recapitalisation in relation to the hub.

South Korea’s financial watchdog urged lenders to expand financial support for troubled builders as concerns grow over risks from distressed real estate projects, Bloomberg News reported. The number of project finance sites seeing “significantly worsening profitability” is rising due to high interest rates and construction costs, Lee Bokhyun, governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, said in a Thursday meeting with financial and construction firms.

Canada's banking regulator is limiting the number of highly leveraged loans in banks' residential mortgage portfolios, which have ballooned alongside house prices to make Canadian borrowers among the most indebted in the world, the Globe and Mail reported on Friday, according to Reuters. The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OFSI) has told lenders they will have to limit loans to borrowers with mortgages greater than 4.5 times their annual income, the newspaper reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

China relaxed rules governing cross-border data flows, addressing a key concern of foreign businesses that had complained previous regulations were disrupting their operations, Bloomberg News reported. Data collected in international trade, cross-border travel, manufacturing, academic research, and marketing that don’t contain either personal information or “important” information will be exempt from security evaluations when transfered out of the country, China’s top internet regulator said in a statement on Friday.

Both Altice France and a group of its creditors have started working with financial and legal advisers, amid a deepening stand-off between the telecoms firm and its lenders over the fate of the company’s debt load, Bloomberg News reported. On the company side, Altice is talking to Lazard Inc., while some bondholders — including Attestor Capital and Arini — are in discussions with advisers Houlihan Lokey Inc. and law firm Milbank LLP ahead of debt talks with the company, according to people familiar with the matter.

New Zealand’s farm-rich economy was in recession in the final three months of 2023 despite a jump in population growth, with economists now expecting the central bank to fall in line with many of its global peers and deliver interest-rate cuts in the second half of the year, the Wall Street Journal reported. Gross domestic product growth contracted 0.1% in the fourth quarter, following a 0.3% contraction in the third quarter, Stats NZ said Thursday. GDP has contracted sequentially for four out of the past five quarters.

Mexico’s central bank cut interest rates for the first time since 2021 in a split decision, finally joining a regional trend for monetary easing as inflation slows, Bloomberg News reported. The bank cut its key rate a quarter point to 11% on Thursday, as forecast by 26 of 29 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Deputy governor Irene Espinosa voted to leave the rate unchanged, while the other four board members all backed the reduction, the bank said in its policy statement.

Japan’s consumer inflation picked up in February, adding to speculation that the Bank of Japan may raise interest rates again later this year, the Wall Street Journal reported. Overall consumer prices rose 2.8% from a year earlier in February, compared with the 2.2% increase in January, government data showed Friday. Food prices continued to rise, while the effects of the government’s support for energy bills tapered off.

WOM Chile and some of its creditors have tapped advisers ahead of potential debt talks, Bloomberg News reported. Holders of global bonds issued by the mobile operator began working with Dechert LLP this week, according to the people, who asked not to be named as the negotiations are private. They didn’t identify members of the bondholder group that retained the law firm. Some bondholders also hired Ducera Partners LLC as an adviser, according to two other people familiar with the matter.