The creditors of Signa Holding have registered claims for 8.613 billion euros, according to the report that curator Christof Stapf presented to the creditors’ meeting on Monday. In a first step, of the 302 claims submitted so far, only 80.3 million euros were recognized and 8.533 billion euros were provisionally disputed.
However, many claims were submitted too late or after the registration deadline had passed. And in a third of the claims, the correct documents to prove the claims were not submitted, the audit report shows.
The number of claims may still increase
It can therefore be assumed that the amount of recognized claims will increase significantly. Creditors can assert their claims by filing a lawsuit with the insolvency court within two months. And the curator in turn examines the claims and will acknowledge them if necessary. “It will be up to the creditors to provide the documents required for the proper handling of the claim registrations through the curator,” said Stapf.
Approximately EUR 5.1 billion of the claims registered to date relate to liability claims arising from guarantees and letters of comfort and EUR 1.6 billion to obligations arising from intra-group payments. The latter – the so-called ‘intercompany obligations’ – were completely disputed by the trustee. And 1.04 billion euros is attributable to loan obligations.
The damage claims are relatively moderate at 124 million euros and 33 million euros in fee claims. The report shows that trade receivables, public charges and rental receivables amount to 2.7 million euros.
Two arbitration claims are still open
Separately, two arbitration claims from Mubadala (UAE) and AM1 (Al Mirqab Capital, Qatar) are still open: they concern the payment of 713 million and 296 million euros respectively. Signa Holding has requested a suspension of both proceedings due to the bankruptcy.
Currently, not only the current and fixed assets that are not needed are sold, but also investments such as Signa RFR US Selection, Kadens Capital and the media investments are being exploited. Deloitte was charged with the valuation of the investments and negotiations on the sale of these investments are ongoing. Furthermore, Stapf and Deloitte draw up a financing plan and check the value of the assets. In addition, the questionability of some business transactions in the period of twelve months before the declaration of bankruptcy is also examined.
Switzerland must first recognize insolvency proceedings
In Switzerland, the insolvency proceedings of Signa Holding must first be recognized in order to receive information about the inheritance proceedings of the Swiss subsidiaries of Swiss Signa Retail.
Because the trustees of the Signa Group have different interests to represent, there is currently no group-wide steering committee. An expert report is now intended to provide clarity about the mutual information obligations of Signa Development and Signa Prime with the bankrupt estate of Signa Holding.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
