Netherlands

Dutch bancassurer ING asked a European court on Tuesday to revoke certain terms imposed as part of its state rescue, a move which could postpone asset sales and cut the cost of repayment, Reuters reported. A ruling in ING's favour could give the financial group more time to spin off its insurance operations in two separate initial public offerings (IPOs) and to sell WestlandUtrecht, a small local bank -- divestments which ING must carry out as a condition of its rescue during the credit crisis.

Dutch investment group Novapars Capital said on Thursday it has agreed to buy the 115 million euro ($163 million) German loan portfolio of DSB Bank, the first sale of the bankrupt Dutch bank's operations, Reuters reported. DSB was declared bankrupt in October 2009 after it was hit by a liquidity crunch when clients withdrew about one-sixth of the group's deposits. The company was later seized by the Dutch central bank, DNB, and its assets are under administration.

Troubled Swedish carmaker Saab, owned by Netherlands-based Swedish Automobile , said on Tuesday it had offered a deal to suppliers over unpaid debts in an effort to get production restarted, Reuters reported. Saab said on Monday its Trollhattan factory in southern Sweden would be idle for two more weeks after having stood still for most of April and May because it could not pay its suppliers and ran out of parts.

When Jan Hommen was approached to run ING Groep NV, the timing couldn't have been worse. The Dutchman was just planning to move to the U.S. and spend more time with his children and grandchildren. And, having little experience in banking and insurance, he was far from the obvious choice to guide the Dutch bancassurer through the biggest crisis in its history, The Wall Street Journal reported. "I have to admit that it was a bit disconcerting," he says. "My first thought was: Do I have what it takes to pull this off?" More than two years later, his doubts have faded.

Spyker Cars NV, which owns the troubled Swedish car maker Saab Automobile, is in talks with three Chinese companies about possible investments, according to two people familiar with the situation, as the Dutch car maker Friday cut its 2011 sales outlook and reported an operating loss for the first quarter. The Chinese companies are Great Wall Motor Co., China Youngman Automobile Group Co. and Jiangsu Yueda Group Co., two people familiar with the matter told Dow Jones Newswires.

The future of Saab Automobile remained uncertain Tuesday after its Dutch owner Spyker Cars NV said it had to fulfill additional conditions to win approval for its short-term funding plans and was unsure whether it could fulfill these conditions within a short period of time, The Wall Street Journal reported. Separately, parts suppliers said they would soon have to start laying off workers as a production suspension continued at Saab Automobile's plant in Trollhattan, Sweden.

A fund controlled by billionaire investor Len Blavatnik has been asked to return EUR100 million ($145.8 million) to the bankruptcy estate of chemical giant LyondellBasell Industries, which emerged from Chapter 11 protection last year but left a trustee to file lawsuits to recover funds for the company's unsecured creditors, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. In a lawsuit filed Friday with the U.S.

Dutch car maker Spyker Cars NV Friday said its funding situation was tight as its Saab Automobile unit continued to burn cash faster than expected, and it warned that the Swedish auto maker's future was in doubt if it couldn't secure additional financing, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. In its annual report published Friday, Spyker reiterated it was in talks to improve its financing and said it was confident it would happen. But how and from whom Spyker intends to get the required cash remains unclear.

Dutch bioscience company Pantarhei intends to bid for the bulk of U.S. company Merck's Netherlands-based bioscience research unit Organan, the Dutch Financieele Dagblad reported on Monday, Reuters reported. Pantarhei Bioscience director Herjan Coeling Bennink, told the paper that Pantarhie can make the proposal as a result of backing from international private equity investors. No financial details were provided. The private equity investors were not named either.

The Dutch Supreme Court ordered an end to KPNQwest's bankruptcy investigation, reducing the likelihood that administrators can recover 4.2 billion euros ($5.59 billion) in unpaid debt from shareholders KPN and Qwest, Reuters reported. KPNQwest, a wholesale fibre glass telecoms joint venture between U.S. phone carrier Qwest and Dutch telecoms group KPN for corporate customers, was listed in 1999 but went bankrupt in 2002 after the telecoms and technology bubble burst.