Headlines

The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has nearly reached on the brink of bankruptcy due to end of credit limit from Ministry of Finance (MoF) while several government departments also owe billion of rupees to the national entity, the Daily Times reported. The sources in MoF said Thursday that credit line for TCP of Rs 110 billion has been utilised and tenders for soft commodities are also sitting in cold storage. He said the governments of four provinces, besides Azad Kashmir administration and departments of Northern Areas are also defaulters of TCP for more than Rs 33 billion.

Acom Co. and Promise Co. said they’ve seen an increase in customer inquiries about repayments of overcharged interest since rival consumer lender Takefuji Corp. sought bankruptcy protection two weeks ago, Bloomberg reported. Masahito Osawa, a spokesman for Acom, and Promise’s Risa Matsumura said more clients are asking about refunds for overcharged interest since Takefuji’s collapse, without providing estimates for the potential cost. Takefuji’s Sept.

Former Anglo Irish Bank chief executive David Drumm has filed for bankruptcy in the United States after the State-owned bank rejected his proposal to settle its legal action in the High Court in Dublin over loans of €8.5 million, The Irish Times reported. Mr Drumm applied for bankruptcy in a Boston court in Massachusetts near his US home at 3pm Irish time yesterday in advance of the bank’s case starting on October 26th.

A U.K. High Court Judge granted an injunction against Liverpool owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr. that would quash a U.S.-based legal effort by the owners to stop the sale of Liverpool to New England Sports Ventures, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. The injunction was sought by Liverpool's chief creditor, Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, and the team's board of directors, which has approved a sale of the team to NESV despite the objections of Hicks and Gillett.

Labour finance spokesman David Cunliffe says decisions made to reject bids for South Canterbury Finance (SCF) means the cost to taxpayers has been between $300 million and $500 million too much, The New Zealand Herald reported. SCF went into receivership at the end of August, leading to a $1.7 billion government payout to investors, of which $1.6 billion was under the retail deposit guarantee scheme.

The Gillard government has warned banks it's too early to start foreclosing on loans to irrigation farmers in the Murray-Darling Basin, The Australian reported. A report by an independent banking consultant Adrian Rizza warns banks fear at least eight irrigation town may not survive cuts in water allocations to farmers, and that some banks have already started taking action to address their loan exposure in the Murray-Darling Basin.

The European Union on Wednesday fired the first shot in a process that could lead to tighter supervision of auditing firms, saying that the dominance of four big companies poses "systemic risks" to the financial system, the Associated Press reported. Announcing a consultation on the role of the industry, EU markets commissioner Michel Barnier questioned whether firms that both examine a company's financial statements and provide consultancy work for the same company can truly be independent.

The High Court has appointed an interim examiner to Pierse Contracting and Pierse Building Services, two companies in the Pierse Group, one of Ireland’s biggest construction firms, InsolvencyJournal.ie reported. Mr Justice Brian McGovern appointed John McStay of McStay Luby as interim examiner to the businesses after hearing that an independent accountant believes that they have a reasonable chance of survival. In a statement the companies’ directors said that they supported the appointment of Mr McStay.

Canada's Adanac Molybdenum Corp, which is under Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act protection, said it will seek court approval Monday for its credit restructuring plan, Reuters Africa reported. The company, which has got extension to CCAA protection until Oct. 29, intends to seek approval from the Supreme Court of British Columbia to increase its authorized share capital and consolidate its shares at a 150-to-1 ratio.

Halliwells' now infamous Spinningfields property deal is being investigated as the administration of the now-defunct law firm enters its next phase, LegalWeek.com reported. The Spinningfields landlord, Credit Suisse Asset Management (CSAM), is seeking advice from Eversheds real estate litigation partner Will Densham to see if any money can be recovered from Halliwells. This includes looking over the controversial multimillion-pound payout received by Halliwells' equity partners in 2007. Halliwells took out a 25-year lease on the building at 3 Hardman Square, of which 23 years remain.