Ireland

Hundreds of Irish people have had their travel plans thrown into disarray following the collapse of the 1800hotels.ie. online travel company, The Irish Times reported. The company, which handles bookings for some 70,000 hotels around the world, said last night that it had been forced into bankruptcy proceedings in the United States as it attempted to restructure its debt. In a statement, a spokesman for the company said some customers might experience room cancellations. The 1800Hotels spokesman said it was pursuing a legal injunction to prevent any further disruption to customers.

Former Anglo Irish Bank chairman Seán FitzPatrick has been adjudicated a bankrupt by the High Court at his own request, just days after opposition from the bank ensured the collapse of his proposed settlement deal with creditors, The Irish Times reported. The official assignee in bankruptcy, Chris Lehane, will now deal with Mr FitzPatrick’s creditors, who are owed some €150 million. His assets are estimated to be worth some €50 million, including investments of some €45.7 million, and some €1.23 million in accounts in various financial institutions.

Irish Nationwide plans to hire law firm McCann Fitzgerald and accountants Ernst Young to investigate lending policies and practices followed by the building society under the management of former chief Michael Fingleton, The Irish Times reported. The building society has been asked to develop a legacy plan by the Government. It has effectively been nationalised following the Government’s commitment to inject €2.7 billion into it.

Former Anglo Irish Bank chairman Seán FitzPatrick is to ask the High Court to declare him bankrupt on Monday after he told the court the bank has blocked a proposed settlement deal with his creditors, The Irish Times reported. Mark Sanfey SC, counsel for Mr FitzPatrick, told the court today his client wanted to petition the court to be adjudicated bankrupt.

The Morrison Hotel on Ormond Quay, Dublin, is to be run by a provisional liquidator after the hotel's operating company withdrew its defence against a claim by the receiver for €5.7 million in unpaid rent, InsolvencyJournal.ie reported. Mr Justice Brian McGovern entered the judgement against the Morrison Hotel Ltd in the High Court and appointed a liquidator to the firm on the grounds that it was unable to repay the debt.

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.

Problems with its overseas operations have contributed to forcing Asian restaurant chain Mao into receivership, the Irish Times reported. AIB has appointed Kenneth Fennell of corporate restructuring specialists Kavanagh Fennell as receiver to the company, which operates three restaurants in Dublin. The business is continuing to trade under its existing management and is seeking a buyer or new investor. In recent years, the group opened restaurants in Cape Town in South Africa, which is closed; and in Glasgow, Scotland, which is for sale.

Former Irish tycoons Bernard McNamara and Sean Fitzgerald are both facing bankruptcy after private investors mounted a fresh attempt to force McNamara into insolvency, while Fitzgerald’s bid to avoid bankruptcy seems set to fail, IrishCentral reported. McNamara, the Clare-born builder turned property developer, is being pursued by a group of investors seeking up to 40 properties. McNamara, whom the Sunday Times dubbed ‘the man who lost everything’, is being pursued by creditors on two separate fronts, according to Court and media reports.

A boutique hotel backed by the businessmen Paddy Kelly and Niall McFadden has gone into receivership, The Sunday Business Post reported. Ulster Bank has taken possession of Lisloughrey Lodge, a country house hotel next to Ashford Castle in Cong, Co Mayo. The bank has a €10 million exposure to the hotel. Kieran Wallace, head of insolvency with KPMG accountants, has been installed as receiver over the property. A meeting of creditors will take place later this month to appoint a liquidator.

Mortgage arrears at Irish banks rose 13 per cent in the first three months of the year, the Financial Regulator said today. At the end of March, 32,321 residential mortgages with a value of €6.1 billion were more than 90 days behind in payments, The Irish Times reported. This equates to more than 4 per cent of the total of 791,000 property loans in the State, which are worth a total of €118 billion. Some 2.8 per cent of mortgages, or €4.1 billion, were more than 180 days behind.