HIH liquidator Tony McGrath has dropped plans to sue the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) for its part in the insurer’s collapse, but he’s preparing briefs against a range of other parties associated with the collapse, including auditors, actuaries, reinsurers, directors and advisers. Mr McGrath won’t say who they are, but a report in the Sydney Morning Herald said there are about eight. Some former directors of HIH are counted as one party.

Mr McGrath and colleague Alex Macintosh said yesterday that the claims may exceed $1 billion. As for APRA, some of the individuals being sued might still join APRA to their cases.

So far the only HIH-associated parties to have writs issued against them are the company’s auditors, Arthur Andersen, and actuary David Slee.

Mr McGrath said the first interim payment to HIH creditors will be made late next year. It will be no more than 5 cents in the dollar and after that creditors might reasonably expect a total of between 10 cents and 20 cents in the dollar, spread over seven to 10 years.