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Bahamas Developer Claims Huge Chinese Fraud at $3.9 Billion Resort

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China Construction America Inc. was accused in a lawsuit of ripping off the original developer of the long-delayed $3.9 billion Baha Mar resort in the Bahamas by submitting fraudulent bills and collecting undeserved fees, Bloomberg News reported. BML Properties Ltd., led by wealthy Bahamas businessman Sarkis Izmirlian, sued CCA Tuesday claiming the state-owned Chinese contractor pulled off a “massive fraud” to enrich itself at BML’s expense, leading to the collapse of the project in 2015. Delays in the construction of the biggest and most expensive resort to be built in the Caribbean have been a drag on the Bahamian economy in recent years. BML claims that CCA submitted hundreds of millions of dollars in fake bills, understaffed the project and used it as a training ground for inexperienced workers. CCA knew it wouldn’t be able to meet the planned December 2014 deadline to open the resort but created the appearance that it would, in order to remain on the project and collect undeserved fees, BML claims. BML is seeking at least $2.25 billion in damages. BML filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware in 2015. A U.S. bankruptcy judge dismissed the case in favor of a Bahamian court.

Toys 'R' Us Creditors Back UK Restructuring Plan

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Creditors of Toys ‘R’ Us UK overwhelmingly approved the struggling retailer’s restructuring plan at a meeting yesterday, enabling it to stave off a collapse into administration, Reuters reported. Earlier this month the British arm of Toys ‘R’ Us Inc of the United States, which filed for bankruptcy protection in September, said it would seek creditor approval for a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA). The plan will see the closure of at least 26 of its 105 British stores in 2018 and reduced rent on the stores that stay open. It would lead to 500-800 redundancies among its total workforce of 3,200. The stores earmarked for closure will, however, remain open as normal through Christmas and into the new year. At yesterday’s meeting 98 percent of Toys ‘R’ Us’ UK creditors, voted in favour of the restructuring proposals, surpassing the required 75 percent threshold.

Takata to Pay Fraction of a Penny for Air-Bag Damages

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People with injuries or economic damage from Takata Corp.-made air bags will get a fraction of a penny for each dollar they are owed, under a U.S. chapter 11 bankruptcy plan unveiled this week, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The bankruptcy payment plan for Takata’s U.S. unit sets out a system for distributing the beleaguered company’s assets, including a share of cash from the $1.6 billion sale of the non-air bag businesses to Key Safety Systems Inc. Money from the Key sale won’t go far to address the billions of dollars of damages stemming from Takata’s potentially defective air bags, court papers indicate. Takata U.S.’s chapter 11 plan estimates personal-injury and wrongful-death damages alone will top $1 billion. Add to that economic losses such as the cost of renting vehicles while air bags are replaced, and the money spent by car makers cleaning up after Takata’s defective parts, and the bankruptcy payout falls billions of dollars short of covering the damage from the defective parts. An official overseeing a massive recall of the dangerous safety devices, John Buretta, reported in November that the “words ‘grenade’ and ‘ticking time bomb’ accurately convey the lethal potential” of Takata air bags installed in millions of vehicles around the world.

Offshore Driller Ocean Rig Prepares to Explore Sale

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Offshore driller Ocean Rig UDW Inc. is preparing to explore a sale amid pressure from some of its largest shareholders to review its strategic alternatives, Reuters. The move will be a key test of Ocean Rig’s value after it emerged from chapter 15 bankruptcy in September. Its business has suffered as low oil prices have made offshore drilling less economically attractive and pushed more oil exploration onshore. Based in Grand Cayman, Ocean Rig specializes in ultra-deepwater and harsh environment projects undertaken by oil exploration companies in the offshore drilling industry. Within a month of exiting bankruptcy, Ocean Rig’s largest shareholder, hedge fund Elliott Management Corp, called for the company to review strategic options, adding it planned to recruit the company’s second largest shareholder, BlueMountain Capital, in its efforts. It was joined a day later by Avenue Capital Group, the company’s fifth-largest shareholder, in demanding that it evaluates a possible sale. These three funds collectively own 39 percent of Ocean Rig’s stock.

Oi Creditors Approve Largest-Ever Latin American Restructuring

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Creditors in Brazilian telecoms company Oi SA today approved a plan to restructure $20 billion in debt owed by the firm, overcoming the main hurdle in Latin America’s largest-ever bankruptcy process, Reuters reported. After a marathon 15-hour meeting in Rio de Janeiro, three of four creditor classes voted nearly unanimously for the plan. The only major ‘no’ vote appeared to come from national telecoms regulator Anatel, which held billions of dollars in Oi debt through unpaid regulatory fines. The vote caps off a year and a half of bruising negotiations, in which creditors and the company fought over how to best restructure some 65 billion reais ($20 billion) in debt.

South Korean Cryptocurrency Exchange to File for Bankruptcy after Hacking

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A South Korean cryptocurrency exchange said on Tuesday it is shutting down and is filing for bankruptcy after it was hacked for the second time this year, highlighting concerns about security as trade in bitcoin and other virtual currencies boom, Reuters reported. The exchange, called Youbit, had been hacked once before in April when nearly 4,000 bitcoins were stolen in a cyber attack that the country’s spy agency linked to North Korea, according to a South Korean newspaper report on Saturday. Youbit announced on its website that it had been hacked today, causing a loss worth 17 percent of its total assets. It did not elaborate on the amount, but said all customers’ cryptocurrency assets will be marked down to 75 percent of its value, adding that it has stopped trading and will work to minimize customer losses. Youbit is a smaller player in South Korea’s cryptocurrency market, with the world’s busiest cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb accounting for about 70 percent of the country’s market share.

Oi Creditors to Vote on Restructuring Despite Shareholder Complaints

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Creditors of Oi SA began gathering in Rio de Janeiro today to vote on a plan to take the Brazilian telecoms operator out of bankruptcy protection, despite a flurry of legal actions by a key shareholder trying to stop the vote, Reuters reported. By mid-morning, creditors in Latin America’s largest-ever bankruptcy case started trickling into the 22,000-square-meter RioCentro convention center. The company, which spent some 2 million reais ($600,000) on the meeting, had readied the facility twice before, but was forced to break down the temporary infrastructure when court battles and creditor fights delayed previous votes. This time, however, Oi’s management appeared likely to win over enough support from creditors to restructure some 65.4 billion reais in debt after a year and a half of contentious talks. Major bondholders have already expressed support for the plan, which could give them control of the company through a debt-for-equity swap. Still, some creditors such as state development bank BNDES, whose support is required for passage, have been more circumspect.