DUTCH-OWNED ACCBank threatened to liquidate 10 subsidiaries of two insolvent holding companies in Liam Carroll’s Zoe development group if it was not repaid €136 million in outstanding loans.
Repayment demand letters sent by ACC to Vantive Holdings and Jersey-registered Morston Investments said that the subsidiary companies were debtors of the two firms at the end of March 2008.
The bank named the subsidiaries and the sums owing to the two main companies in letters dated June 29th last seeking repayment of the loans within 21 days.
ACC warned it would liquidate Vantive and Morston and make funding available to liquidate any of their subsidiaries owing money to the two firms in an attempt to recover the outstanding loans.
The bank named Danninger, Eppo Developments, North Quay Investments and Peytor Developments as subsidiaries that owed money to Morston and said the sums owing in each case at March 2008 were €86 million, €17 million, €18.8 million and €69 million.
In another warning letter seeking repayment of a loan to Vantive, ACC listed 11 companies as debtors, with Danninger, Mr Carroll’s well-known development firm, owing the company the largest sum, €237 million.
The other companies and debts owing in March 2008 were Bronzone €16.8 million, Crossman Properties €80.4 million, Jamar Properties €12.6 million, Morston Investments €18 million, NetUSA €49 million, North Quay Investments €84 million, Peytor Developments €15.6 million, Villeer Developments €19.6 million and Zed Developments €27.3 million.
The figures show the level of inter-company debts and how ACC’s threats against the two holding companies at the apex of the group exposed numerous subsidiaries to possible liquidation.
Last week ACC secured the appointment of a provisional liquidator, Declan Taite of accountants FGS, to Vantive and Morston, and a receiver, also Mr Taite, to Peytor, Villeer, Carragh Enterprises and Parlez International.
This followed the rejection of the firms’ survival plan by the High Court and Supreme Court, which both found that they had no reasonable prospect of survival.
Seven Zoe group companies secured a last-minute reprieve on Friday night to apply for court protection again at a hearing this Thursday and another chance to put their survival plan in place.
The six companies, together with a seventh Carroll firm, Royceton, asked Mr Justice de Valera in an emergency application last Friday to hear a petition seeking the appointment of an examiner.
The firms are providing detailed property valuation reports to back up their survival plan, along with letters of support from group lenders, which are owed more than €1 billion, showing the funding of continuing development.
They are also submitting a new independent accountant’s report, from KPMG, to back up their survival plan.
Mr Justice de Valera said he had “serious reservations” about hearing an application that was considered and rejected by both the High Court and Supreme Court, but permitted the petition to be heard in full this Thursday.
The companies must prove that they have a reasonable prospect of survival to remove both the provisional liquidator and the receiver.
Neither Mr Carroll’s firms nor ACC are making any comment.
