Headlines

Halliwells has filed a second notice of intention to appoint an administrator in a bid to buy more time to secure a sale of the firm without entering into administration, Legal Week reported. The notice was filed 7 July which will allow the firm until 20 July to conclude any potential deals with other firms. The notice will provide a moratorium on Halliwells' liabilities.

Jim Mansfield’s high-profile Citywest Hotel, conference centre and golf complex in Saggart, Co Dublin, has been placed into receivership by Bank of Scotland (Ireland), The Irish Times reported. The bank yesterday appointed Martin Ferris of Ferris Associates as receiver to HSS, which trades as the Citywest Hotel, Conference Centre, Leisure and Golf Resort. The appointment also includes the assets of Jeffel, a land-holding company. The large Citywest site includes 1,712 bedrooms, two golf courses, two conference centres and a helipad.

New Barcelona president Sandro Rosell has rubbished reports suggesting the Spanish giants face bankruptcy, though he did express concerns about the club's contract with financially stricken TV partner Mediapro, ESPN reported. Rosell's announcement on Barca's official website outlines plans to take out a €150 million loan to help pay staff and player wages, amid reports that Mediapro are in receivership and may not be able to honour a €1 billion TV rights deal that runs until 2013.

Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd is tipped to today seal its $55 million acquisition of electrical and whitegoods retailer Clive Peeters Ltd, which is in voluntary administration, Fairfax Media reported. Around $38 million of the purchase price, which will buy clearance centres and some warehouses as well as the retail stores, will be used to repay National Australia Bank Ltd, which is Clive Peeters' sole secured creditor. Unsecured creditors are expected to receive around 30 cents in the dollar, with total claims thought to be between $48.5 million and $70 million, according to Fairfax.

Vietnam will restructure Vinashin, its top shipbuilder, cutting its non-core businesses after the firm was found to be nearly bankrupt, a ruling party commission said, Reuters reported. The case of Vinashin, which followed a pilot scheme to reform state-run businesses, has raised concern over the effectiveness of the reforms, economists have said. The ruling Communist Party found Vinashin Chairman Pham Thanh Binh, who also heads the party chapter at the firm, "irresponsible in the mobilisation, management and use of the state capital, pushing Vinashin to the brink of bankruptcy".

As debt-laden European governments push in on measures to cut spending and raise funds, a number of countries are preparing to accelerate efforts to sell public property, The Wall Street Journal reported. European countries for years have been selling public assets such as office buildings and residential units in order to raise money.

Iceland’s lenders may lose as much as $4.3 billion, equivalent to a third of the economy, after a court last month found that some foreign loans were illegal, said Finance Minister Steingrimur J. Sigfusson, Bloomberg reported. “This is the largest single loan category of the banks, with a value of between 800 billion kronur and 900 billion kronur ($7.2 billion),” Sigfusson said.

Insolvent modular home manufacturer Winalta Inc. has been given a court extension to come up with a restructuring plan, The Edmonton Journal reported. Edmonton Court of Queen’s Bench Friday agreed to extend the deadline to Aug. 6 while the Acheson company continues to dispose of assets. The company was granted court protection from creditors April 26 when it could not meet its debt obligations. The court has approved the sale of 29 homes and lots and three vacant lots at Sylvan Lake for $3.8 million, as well as 118 acres of residential property in Estevan, Sask. for $1.6 million.

The deadline for bids for Italian fashion house Gianfranco Ferre, one of Milan's top designer names, was extended to Aug. 2 to give latecomer foreign bidders time to prepare an offer, a source close to the sale said, Reuters reported. A call for bids for the fashion house, known for its "architectural" style in suits, was set to expire on Tuesday. In a statement on Monday, the special commissioners running parent company IT Holding, which went into administration in February 2009 after it ran out of cash, said the deadline for Ferre's auction was postponed to Aug.

Uchumi Supermarkets’ 12,0000 owners have agreed to convert the chain’s debts into equity in a bid to win back firm’s trading rights at the Nairobi Stock Exchange, Business Daily Africa reported. Uchumi’s shares were suspended from trading on the stock exchange in 2006 after it closed its stores following an aggressive but failed expansion plan that led to a Sh1.2 billion loss and left the firm reeling in a Sh2 billion debt owed to suppliers, Kenya Commercial Bank and PTA bank. At the time of delisting from the bourse, Uchumi shares were trading at Sh14.50.