Dozens of out-of-pocket Blue Chip investors packed into Auckland District Court this afternoon had mixed reactions when Mark Bryers, the man they trusted with their lost cash, was fined a total of $33,750 and ordered to do 75 hours community work, The National Business Review reported. Bryers (52), a bankrupt who has lived and worked in Sydney since 2007, faced 34 charges prosecuted by the Ministry of Economic Development for breaching the Companies Act and the Financial Reporting Act. Bryers’ Blue Chip empire collapsed in 2008, owing more than 2000 investors more than $84 million.

Auckland-based property financier Viaduct Capital has been placed into receivership, owing $7.8 million to investors, The National Business Review reported. While the Treasury booted Viaduct Capital out of the retail deposit guarantee scheme last April, approximately $7.3 million of secured debentures are still covered by the guarantee. The balance – just $500,000 – is unguaranteed. The guarantee was still valid for deposits made up until the withdrawal of the guarantee on April 20, 2009. The withdrawal forced Viaduct to cancel a prospectus seeking $50 million.

Creditors for the Riverland freight business, Fletcher's Freighters, will meet today to discuss the company's future, after the owner Barry Fletcher was made redundant, ABC News reported. Fletchers Freighters went into voluntary administration in March this year, to allow more time to developing a restructuring plan. But less than two-months on, interstate depots in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne have closed. Administrator McGrathNicol says there are about 100 workers left with the company, although the recent loss of a contract with National Foods cut 40 per cent of the freighter's business.

Rockforte Finance, the minnow finance company caught up in last year's liquidation of the Jeans Jones retail chain, has become the fourth lender guaranteed by the government to fail, BusinessDay reported. Katherine Kenealy and Dennis Parsons of Indepth Forensic have been appointed receivers of the Gisborne-based lender, which owes some 70 investors about $3.2 million. The Treasury confirmed all eligible depositors are covered by the government’s guarantee.

A trustee yesterday moved against one of the country's largest property businesses, putting it into receivership. Finance company St Laurence, which owes 9000 investors $245 million, had proposed investors take a shareholding in the company as an alternative, The New Zealand Herald reported. But yesterday Perpetual Trust appointed Barry Jordan and David Vance of Deloitte as receivers. The St Laurence board this morning issued a statement saying it was "disappointed" that Perpetual Trust had appointed a receiver.

Property investment company St Laurence has been placed in receivership by its trustee a day after the company put forward an alternative debt for "equity" swap, The National Business Review reported. Perpetual Trust has appointed Barry Jordan and David Vance of Deloitte as receivers of St Laurence, which owes 9,000 investors $245 million. The move to receivership comes after St Laurence indicated yesterday it was insolvent and could no longer meet its scheduled moratorium payments to investors.

The board of finance company St Laurence Limited have told its investors that either they vote to swap their debt for shares, or the company will go into receivership, nzherald.co.nz reported. Some 9,000 investors owed NZ$250 million in frozen funds agreed to give the company until 2013 to repay 70 per cent of its debentures. A meeting has now been called where these same investors will be asked to exchange their debenture stock and capital notes for shares in St Laurence holdings - the company set up to acquire the finance company's assets.

The trend by banks in Australia to wind up small businesses that have fallen behind is likely to take off in New Zealand, a business turnaround specialist says, BusinessDay.co.nz reported. Trevor Thornton, of accounting firm Grant Thornton New Zealand, said Australian banks were starting to stop supporting small businesses "nursed for a couple of years", but now late with their repayments. "It would seem only a matter of time before banks on this side of the Tasman start to lose patience with companies that have not been able to effectively rehabilitate themselves," Mr Thornton said.

Forest Enterprises Australia Ltd (FEA) has entered voluntary administration, with the troubled timber plantations operator bemoaning a supposed lack of patience among its bankers, The Sydney Morning Herald reported on an Australian Associated Press story. FEA, which had expected to report an operating loss for the half year ended December 31, 2009, said on Wednesday that its revenue over the past 18 months had been hurt by the impact of the global financial crisis on markets for forestry investment, timber and export wood fibre.

The Securities Commission says there may be more legal action against four Lombard Finance and Investments directors, including former National Party cabinet minister Sir Douglas Graham, Radio New Zealand reported. Sir Douglas and the other directors, former Labour Party cabinet minister, Bill Jeffries, Michael Reeves, and Lawrence Bryant face penalties of up to $500,000 each for allegedly misleading investors. The civil action by the Securities Commission comes two years after Lombard Finance was placed into receivership, owing $127 million to about 4400 investors.