Dead broke: CBL has no money to pay creditors
New Zealand-based insurer CBL Corporation has yet to pay any of its creditors who are owed at least $NZ173 million ($165 million), the voluntary administrators say in a new report.
The disposal of some offshore assets – including Sydney-based Assetinsure – in the past year has netted about $NZ207,000 ($198,295), with the bulk of the sale proceeds expected to come through at a later stage.
About $NZ1.93 million ($1.84 million) in fees has been paid to KordaMentha, who were appointed administrators in February last year, joint administrator Neale Jackson says in the report.
Legal costs have run up to $NZ2.1 million ($2 million) in the year since the company went into administration.
The administration is currently funded through an arrangement made with CBL’s lenders.
“At the date we were appointed the company had no money available to fund the administration,” Mr Jackson says. “In order to undertake the administration, we made arrangements for funding with existing bankers of the company.”
According to the administrators’ report, unsecured creditors are owed nearly $NZ172.8 million ($165 million) and priority creditors $NZ566,766 ($542,946).
Two of the creditors, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the Bank of China, have asked the New Zealand High Court to approve the liquidation of CBL. The court will look into the matter on May 13.
Subsidiary CBL Insurance was placed into liquidation last November by the High Court in Auckland.