Creditors of the troubled foundry company Apex Holdings, which has now been placed under provisional liquidation by the High Court today voted to dispose of its assets, mainly buildings worth $9 million to recover part of the $11 million owed.
The former listed company, established in 1961, was placed under provisional liquidation in February this year due to viability challenges after failing to attract new investment while under judicial management in 2013.
Apex was also suspended from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange during the same year after breaching the exchange’s listing rules.
The company was pinning its hopes on the revival of Phoenix Consolidated, currently under judicial management where it holds a 49 percent stake but the recovery has been slow.
During the meeting at the High Court, creditors presented claims worth over $7 million, among them POSB which is owed $1 million; Infrastructure Development Bank, $1.2 million; Telone, $61 000 and Interfin Bank and NMB Bank whose amounts were not disclosed.
Provisional judicial manager, Reggie Saruchera of Grant Thornton told creditors that the company had a net asset liability of $2.6 million while its liabilities were at $11 million.
However, under forced sell, the assets would realize $463 000 with unsecured creditors getting $309 000 while NMB, which is a secured creditor would get paid in full.
The company has 11 buildings which he said would be sold to recover money while the Apex Pension Fund which is owed $1.2 million expressed interest in swapping its debt for a building.
Some of the buildings had been secured against loans from IDBZ and Interfin but Saruchera said no transfers had been effected hence these banks would be treated like ordinary creditors.
“These buildings were not transferred and lawyers who represented some creditors when the company was under judicial management concurred that the assets belong to Apex and anyone with a claim will file it formally,” said Saruchera.
He said the assets would not be sold by auction but through estate agents to maximize on returns.
Part of the resolutions that creditors passed were to resuscitate Phoenix attractive to investors, sell the building to buyers who had expressed interest and also negotiate with creditors such as the Pension Fund to swap debts with buildings after valuations.-The Source
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