Kenya

A judge has thrown out an application by Kenya Commercial Bank urging him to disqualify himself from hearing a dispute between it and the Kenya Planters Co-operative Union (KPCU), Business Daily reported. Commercial Court Judge, Mr Justice Muga Apondi, ruled that his conduct on the matter was above board and had not favoured any party during the entire trial. KCB, through lawyer Tom Macharia, wanted the case transferred to another judge as a result of what he termed as “perceived” bias by Mr Justice Apondi.

The Chief Executive officer of the Capital Markets Authority Stella Kilonzo said the firm has been found not to be in compliance with the legal and regulatory provisions as outlined in the CMA Act for some time. Wycliffe Shamiah has been appointed the Statutory Manager with effect from 5 February 2010 for a period of six (6) months, the Kenya Broadcasting Company reported. This is the third brokerage firm to be put under receivership after Nyaga stockbrokers and Discount Security limited. Read more.

The government will review receivership laws with the aim of reducing the number of companies that are driven to the graveyard by statutory managers, the Daily Nation reported. Experts say that the current laws provide leeway to entities owed money — whose chief concern is recovery of their loans — sometimes leading to the collapse of companies that could have been saved by proper management. This review would have the effect of making the business environment better for local companies.

The journey to resumption of trading in Uchumi Supermarkets’ shares on the Nairobi Stock Exchange will start today after its bankers agreed to renegotiate terms of its loans and lift the retail chain from receivership, BusinessDaily Africa reported. The company’s shares were suspended from trading on the bourse after it closed its stores in mid-2006 following a botched expansion plan which led to a Sh1.2 billion loss in 2005 and left the firm indebted to the tune of Sh2 billion which it owed to suppliers and KCB and PTA bank.

The High Court has issued orders lifting the debt-ridden Kenya Planters Cooperatives Union out of receivership, the Daily Nation reported. Union chairman Watson Kimathi said the court ruling was “the perfect Christmas gift for farmers”. “We will now resume operations early next year and farmers will be advised when to start delivering coffee,” he said. The union had been under receivership since October 19 because of a Sh700 million debt to the Kenya Commercial Bank. Deloitte Consulting has been running its affairs.

The Kenya Planters Co-operative Union has been placed under receivership over a Sh700 million debt and its operations taken over by Consultancy firm, Deloitte on behalf of the debenture holder, the Kenya Commercial Bank, Business Daily reported. KPCU managing director Gerald Masila termed the action un-procedural, adding: “We were not informed about the move but we will be responding through the legal channels.

The holding company of Northland avocado oil producer Olivado is in receivership after failing to secure new funding arrangements following a management bust up. Auckland firm PKF Corporate Recovery & Insolvency has been appointed as receiver for Olivado Holdings Ltd, which operates Olivado New Zealand Ltd, Olivado Kenya (EPZ) Ltd and Olivado USA Inc. Those firms will continue trading and are not in receivership, a spokeswoman for Olivado said.

Kenya is seeking $500 million in funds to help cushion the economy after the global economic crisis cut exports and foreign investment, Prime Minister Raila Odinga said. The funds are over and above the $200 million loan that Kenya has obtained from the International Monetary Fund, Odinga said in an interview in Cape Town yesterday, where he was attending the World Economic Forum on Africa. The global recession has curbed Kenya’s foreign currency earnings as exports fell and remittances from Kenyans living abroad declined.

Nairobi sweets manufacturer Swan Industries has been placed under receivership by Investment and Mortgage Bank (I&M Bank) in a move that threatens to render more than 100 people jobless, Business Daily reported. The Kisumu-based company has been unable to pay a loan, which the bank refused to disclose on confidentiality grounds, on reduced sales in western Kenya and cutthroat competition from low-cost producers based in Nairobi. The bank appointed Mr Vipul Shah and Mr Dipesh Shah of Nairobi-based VSC Consultants as joint receiver managers.