BHS administration filing could happen as early as Monday, just weeks after the struggling retailer secured a Company Voluntary Arrangement April 24, 2016 Struggling retailer BHS could be due to file for administration as early as Monday, the BBC has reported today. Such a move could potentially lead to the closure of its 164 department stores and put 11,000 jobs at risk. BHS used to be owned by retail tycoon Sir Philip Green and formed part of his [...]
Nearly 60,000 companies hit by National Living Wage already in “significant financial distress”, insolvency firm warns April 20, 2016 The National Living Wage (NLW) risks tipping thousands of vulnerable companies over the edge as they struggle to absorb higher staff costs, one of the UK’s leading insolvency firms has warned. More than 1.8m workers were given a pay rise on 1 April after a new minimum wage came into force, requiring employers to pay at least £7.20 per [...]
Spike in level of UK firms in balance sheet trouble ahead of Brexit vote April 15, 2016 The number of businesses suffering financial distress leapt 20 per cent in the last year, according to analysis by insolvency firm Begbies Traynor. More than 274,000 firms across the UK were either behind on their debt repayments in the first quarter, or had experienced a “marked deterioration” in their financial health since the start of [...]
Oil price turbulence creates “once-in-a-generation buying opportunity” for private equity April 12, 2016 Oil price turbulence has created a “once-in-a-generation buying opportunity” in private equity, according to a new report. PE Views, a report Latham and Watkins, notes that while many companies are "focused on pure survival", there are buyers willing to "bet on an eventual recovery". Read more: Oil price volatility is holding back M&A in the industry… [...]
Bondholders in Austrian ‘bad bank’ Heta hit by significant haircut April 10, 2016 Creditors in Austrian “bad bank” Heta Asset Resolution will receive less than half of their money back according to the country’s financial regulator, the FMA. An FMA statement outlined that senior bondholders could expect to receive at least 46c/€ which would be paid from the realisation of assets by 2020 – and said that this [...]
English football clubs have never been in better financial health, says study April 4, 2016 English football clubs have left their overspending days behind them and have never been in better financial shape, according to a new study by insolvency firm Begbies Traynor. Increasing revenues from television contracts allied with so-called financial fair play rules, which have forced clubs to live within their means, have slashed the number of teams [...]
BHS landlords and creditors approve crucial CVA vote to slash rents March 23, 2016 Struggling department store chain BHS will live to fight another day after creditors and landlords today voted in favour of a restructuring deal to slash the rent bill for its 164 UK stores. The company said 95 per cent of creditors approved a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) for 125 stores at a meeting at the Novotel Hotel in Hammersmith this morning – [...]
The rate of high street shop closures at five-year low as coffee shops and takeaway food outlets take their place March 14, 2016 British high streets lost 14 stores a day in 2015, though the rate of closure has slowed to its lowest level in five years, research out today shows. Around 5,138 shops closed down in town centres in 2015 compared with 5,839 in the previous year, according to data from PwC and the Local Data Company (LDC). [...]
City Moves for 9 March 2016 | Who’s switching jobs March 9, 2016 Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan has announced that Kate Vernon will join the firm as a partner based in the London office. Kate had been a partner at DLA Piper where she was head of the UK competition team. Kate has represented clients in both follow-on and standalone competition claims [...]
BHS appoints KPMG as it pursues CVA in bid to end deadlock with landlords over unsustainable rents March 3, 2016 Struggling department store chain BHS is set to enter into a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in an effort to deal with "unsustainable" rents, which could see the group, previously owned by retail mogul Sir Philip Green, disposing of a number of stores. A CVA allows insolvent companies to pay creditors over a fixed period, while continuing [...]