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Chains of guarantees, in which companies back loans to other firms, are causing pain for the wider Chinese economy, The Wall Street Journal reported. The central bank cut benchmark lending and deposit rates on Friday to reduce financing costs for companies and help revive growth. Guarantees played a large role in fueling China’s rapid debt expansion over the last six years.

In a related story, China’s central bank said its surprise move to cut interest rates for the first time since 2012 is designed to help small firms and protect depositors instead of all-out monetary easing. How the nation’s lenders respond will determine if it works out that way, Bloomberg News reported. The bulk of bank debt in China is still concentrated on big borrowers, with outstanding credit to small firms less than a third of total loans. The People’s Bank of China’s rate cuts came after months of targeted measures failed to lower financing costs for smaller companies.

The Greek authorities presented a budget Friday that forecasts healthy growth after a deep recession and includes substantial tax cuts for the first time in four years. But the upbeat assessment lacked the approval of the country’s international creditors, who remain skeptical that Greece can meet economic targets amid political uncertainty, the International New York Times reported. The budget, introduced in Parliament by Finance Minister Gikas Hardouvelis, predicts that the economy will grow by 2.9 percent in 2015. The Greek economy has shrunk by one-quarter since 2008.

The government has won an argument over insolvency creditor meetings, despite opposition from influential business groups, economia reported. Business groups, including ICAEW and insolvency trade body R3, had told the government to back down on its insolvency reforms – as part of the small business bill – which will see insolvency meetings with creditors banned unless requested by at least 10% of creditors.

Australian food franchise Pie Face has collapsed into voluntary administration. In a statement released to SmartCompany, the Pie Face Group confirmed Jirsch Sutherland has been appointed as administrators. However, Pie Face said it is “business as usual” as the administrators conduct a review of the chain’s operations. “The move comes as part of a wider company review, which will see the company focus on supporting the growth of its franchise-operated stores as well as the wholesale business,” Pie Face said. “The international businesses are not affected”.

The liquidator of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation has secured a preferred bidder to acquire the assurance arm of the former Anglo Irish Bank, the Irish Times reported. The new owner of the unit is understood to be a large European investor, though the deal remains the subject of final due diligence and regulatory approval. The Department of Finance has to approve any major sale of the bank, whose liquidation is being handled by accountancy firm KPMG. IBRC Assurance has a range of property investments made on behalf of the self-administered pension funds of hundreds of clients.

South America’s most economically troubled country, facing fears of a debt default amid tumbling oil prices and a cash crunch, has been thrown a lifeline by its largest lender, China, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Asian giant loosened repayment terms on the nearly $50 billion in loans it has granted Venezuela since 2007, according to Venezuela’s Official Gazette. And President Nicolás Maduro said in a speech last week that his finance minister, Rodolfo Marco, would soon travel to China to try to secure new loans. Mr.

“It now looks clear there are minimal prospects for success with our legal challenge, so we will no longer pursue it,” Mr. Osborne said in a letter to Mark Carney, Bank of England governor and chairman of the Financial Stability Board, The Wall Street Journal reported. The decision follows the publication of European legal advice suggesting the U.K.’s challenge would fail. The U.K.

Cracks are beginning to appear in the vaunted Nordic model. The four main Nordic countries – Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden – still grace the top of most global rankings for happiness, competitiveness, the best place to be a woman and even the best place to be born. That has won them a legion of admirers, from Bill Gates to Scottish nationalists and The Economist, the news magazine, who marvel at the Nordic region’s ability to sustain big welfare systems and competitive economies.

Sofia City Court has said it will have to suspend insolvency proceedings against Corporate Commercial Bank, or KTB, following an appeal by majority owner Bromak, Novinite.com reported. The court said it was informed on Wednesday that Bromak had filed an appeal with the Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) over the central bank's decision to withdraw KTB's banking licence, BGNES reported on Thursday.