Saudi conglomerate Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers (AHAB) said on Wednesday it had filed last week for a financial restructuring under Saudi Arabia’s new bankruptcy law, as it seeks to end a decade-long dispute with creditors, Reuters reported.  Saudi Arabia’s bankruptcy law, which came into effect in August, is an important step towards making the kingdom more investor friendly, offering a legal framework to struggling companies seeking to restructure debt following the 2009 global financial crisis and, more recently, weaker oil prices.

A commercial court in Dammam has rejected an application by the conglomerate Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers (AHAB) to settle its debt under a new Saudi bankruptcy law, AHAB told Reuters on Wednesday. AHAB was the first high-profile company to file for a settlement under Saudi Arabia’s bankruptcy law, which came into effect in August last year, part of reforms aimed at attracting foreign investment and reducing the economy’s dependence on oil, Reuters reported.

Qatar threw a $500 million lifeline to Lebanon because of what it sees as its mission to be the Middle East’s emergency lender to nations in distress, according to the country’s foreign minister, Bloomberg News reported.

Saudi Arabian conglomerate Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers (AHAB) has begun canvassing creditor support for its bid to become the first company to achieve a settlement under the kingdom’s new bankruptcy law, a senior executive said. Creditors will vote in the first quarter of 2019 on whether they agree to AHAB’s plan to reach a protective settlement under the law, said Simon Charlton, AHAB’s chief restructuring officer, Reuters reported.

Saad Group and bank creditors of the Saudi Arabian conglomerate have both selected advisers in a bid to try to reach a deal that could help end the kingdom’s largest and longest-running debt dispute, financial sources said on Thursday. The appointments of London-based Orchard Corporate Strategy by Saad and EY by creditors, is the latest attempt to reach an agreement that will be complicated by an ongoing auction of the company’s assets, Reuters reported.

A Saudi business empire that defaulted on billions in loans during the global financial crisis is trying to settle its debts through the kingdom’s new bankruptcy laws, posing a test for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s economic modernization efforts, The Wall Street Journal reported. Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers sparked a nearly decadelong dispute in 2009 when the firm defaulted on loans from a range of international and regional banks, leading to accusations of financial impropriety.

Conglomerate Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers (AHAB) has become the first company to file for a settlement under Saudi Arabia’s new bankruptcy law, seeking to resolve the kingdom’s longest-running and largest debt dispute, Reuters reported. The company hopes the move will help to bring a conclusion to creditor talks that have rumbled on since AHAB and Saad Group defaulted on about $22 billion of debt in 2009. The law, which came into effect in August 2018, is the latest of the kingdom’s reforms aimed at attracting foreign investment and reducing the economy’s dependence on oil.

One of Saudi Arabia’s major contractors defaulted on almost $2 billion after a falling out among its owners and delays in payments from the government, according to people with knowledge of the matter, Bloomberg News reported. The Saudi unit of Cyprus-based Joannou & Paraskevaides Group defaulted on about 7 billion riyals ($1.9 billion) in bank loans about two months ago, said the people, asking not to be identified as the information is private. The defaults are largely the result of problems getting paid by the Ministry of Interior, the people said.

Rising geopolitical tensions are increasingly playing out in the global debt markets, the Financial Times reported in a commentary. Russia’s launch this week of the sale of a euro-denominated bond is just the latest example.

Saudi Arabia will start auctioning real estate assets of billionaire Maan al-Sanea and his company on Dec. 2 to help repay billions of dollars due to creditors, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The auction, originally planned for late October in the city of Khobar in Eastern Province, was delayed by a last-ditch attempt to reach a settlement, which failed to gain enough support from creditors, one source said, Reuters reported.