R
obert Tchenguiz’s Edgeworth Capital and Abu Dhabi investment fund Aabar today asked a London bankruptcy judge to declare property tycoon Glenn Maud bankrupt.
Speaking at the Bankruptcy & Companies Court, lawyer Antony Zacaroli, said that Maud owes the pair a total of €101 million and there are “real doubts” that he can pay.
Today’s hearing is the latest in a series of requests made by Maud’s creditors pushing for bankruptcy.
The hearing is the latest in a series of requests made by Maud’s creditors pushing for bankruptcy.
At the last hearing, in December, the bankruptcy petition was delayed to give Maud more time to pay after his lawyers said he expected to be able to complete the sale of Spanish bank Santander’s Madrid campus by early 2016.
Two creditors, Navarro Ventures and GAC, are in court to oppose the bankruptcy request. They are owed a total of €94.8m, Zacaroli said.
He said that both those creditors were connected to Maud, with Navarro “ultimately owned by the debtor’s wife”. As a result, their wishes should not be considered as important as Edgeworth and Aabar’s, he said.
“There is a majority in favour of a bankruptcy petition by value, and there isn’t a majority against it by numbers”, he said.
Although separate legal proceedings in Spain might release funds, they are moving very slowly, Zacaroli said.
In addition, Maud “has been attempting to refinance the Santander debt for some time without success” Zacaroli said.
As a result, “there must be real doubt that Mr Maud will obtain any sort of equity finance that would allow him to pay back his creditors”.
The hearing is scheduled to conclude tomorrow.
