Two months before Mt. Gox filed for bankruptcy it was sued by a customer seeking the return of funds in a case that highlights some of the red flags raised in the run-up to the collapse of what was once the world's biggest bitcoin exchange, Reuters reported. New York resident Marko Simovic filed a civil action at the Tokyo District Court on Dec. 24, seeking to recover $105,000 he had on deposit at Mt. Gox and about $14,000 in interest, court filings show. Simovic, who described himself as a software developer who previously managed the bitcoin operations for a hedge fund, said Mt.

A federal judge in Chicago froze the U.S. assets of the chief executive of Tokyo-based Mt. Gox as part of a customer lawsuit against the defunct bitcoin trading exchange, The Wall Street Journal reported. Separately, regulators took steps to gain greater control of the fledgling virtual currency and protect consumers from bitcoin scammers.

The management of German rooftop PV installer and module manufacturer Centrosolar has unveiled an insolvency plan, which has been approved by the company’s creditors’ committee. The main thrust of the plan is that Centrosolar will in future focus on the US market, trading as Centrosolar America. The plan still requires several further stages of approval before it can be implemented, PV-Tech reported. Centrosolar said that in order to save costs, the parent company will be “slimmed down” considerably.

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc's bankruptcy estate has struck a deal to resolve a five-year-long dispute involving its Swiss affiliate, clearing the way to distribute $1.8 billion to creditors, Reuters reported. The deal would enable the estate of Lehman to resolve one of its largest outstanding claims since the investment bank's September 2008 collapse, a major spark in the global financial crisis, and close a settlement from last year with Lehman Brothers Finance AG, the Swiss affiliate that specialized in equities derivatives. The settlement with the Swiss unit was approved by the U.S.

The drawn-out period of forbearance agreements between LDK Solar and US bondholders looks over and the heavily indebted PV manufacturer could start insolvency proceedings in the Cayman Islands should bondholders not agree on a settlement, PV-Tech reported. LDK Solar said that it had made considerable progress with its key offshore creditors in line with two options, both proving hard for creditors of its convertible notes to bear. The company said that it remained optimistic about reaching a settlement in the next few days.

Suntech Power Holdings Corp., the Chinese solar-panel maker that defaulted on $541 million of bonds, filed for bankruptcy court protection from U.S. creditors as it liquidates in the Cayman Islands, Bloomberg News reported. The company filed its Chapter 15 petition late Friday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan as part of a restructuring agreement with petitioners seeking an involuntary filing last year. In November, Suntech told the court that the proposed action by U.S. creditors could derail restructuring efforts.

China's Wanxiang Group won court approval Tuesday to take over failed luxury hybrid-car maker Fisker Automotive Inc. after successfully outbidding Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li in an auction, The Wall Street Journal reported. Mr. Li's takeover vehicle, Hybrid Tech Holdings, signaled it would move to collect most of the $149.2 million Wanxiang is paying, exercising its rights as Fisker's senior secured lender to trump the claims of Fisker's unpaid suppliers. Judge Kevin Gross approved the sale of Fisker's assets to Wanxiang at a hearing in the U.S.

Hibu, the Reading-based Yellow Pages company, has placed six US subsidiaries into Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection as the firm attempts to restructure its overseas operations, following the firm’s UK restructuring which started last month, IT Pro Portal reported. Hibu filed with the US Bankruptcy Court in New York, listing over $1 billion (£600 million) in assets and liabilities. Just over half of Hibu’s revenue comes from the US, where it operates the “Yellowbook” (the US version of the Yellow Pages directory) across most states. The firm employs almost 5,000 personnel in America.

Tuscany International Drilling Inc., a Canadian oil-field services company that operates in South America, sought U.S. bankruptcy court protection from creditors, citing heavy competition and slow payments from customers, Bloomberg News reported. The Calgary-based company listed assets and debt of as much as $500 million each in Chapter 11 papers filed today in Wilmington, Delaware. A Houston-based affiliated holding company also filed for bankruptcy.

China's onetime solar-power giant Suntech Power Holdings Co. plans to file for bankruptcy protection in U.S. court as its leaders negotiate with the holders of more than $500 million in U.S. convertible bonds, according to people familiar with the matter, The Wall Street Journal reported. Suntech Power Holdings, which was once the world's largest solar panel maker, defaulted on its U.S. debt in March, and financial professionals in the Cayman Islands—where the holding company is incorporated—have been trying to negotiate a repayment plan with bondholders.