REMI Capital’s Debt Balloons from $70 to $124 million
REMI Capital, which recently entered voluntary administration, has seen its debt escalate to $124 million, according to liquidators. The debt includes amounts owed to employees, unsecured creditors, statutory bodies, and related entity loans.
Liquidators reveal that Remi Capital’s debt has jumped from the estimated $70 million to a reported $124 million. The firm was placed into voluntary administration on May 25 with Chris Baskerville from specialist insolvency firm Jirsch Sutherland appointed as administrator.
Debt Breakdown
The liquidator’s report showed that of the $124 million in outstanding debt:
- $1 million was owed to employees
- $62 million to unsecured creditors.
- $6 million was owed to the Australian Taxation Office and other statutory bodies
- $30 million in debt to related entity loans.
433 impacted investors have been identified across Australia. This included 259 investors in Victoria, 110 in Queensland, 43 in New South Wales, eight in Western Australia and Tasmania and a handful in South Australia and the NT.
REMI Capital Communications
Peter Kral, CFPO at REMI Capital, sent an email on March 25 that said the company had “experienced several delays in making” repayments in recent months. He said the company was “proposing a payment plan” and blamed a number of factors for the delays including “forfeiture on the repayments of loans/monies by external parties to Remi totalling approximately $4 million (Aus) which was expected to be repaid to Remi late last/early this year”.
After the collapse, Mark Prestige, who had been managing partner at REMI Capital for close to four years, acknowledged there had been a “lack of communication” from the company in recent weeks.
“Remi had been advised by external legal counsel not to communicate over recent weeks until the modelling was complete that allowed this difficult decision to be made,” he wrote in an email addressed to investors, shareholders and ex-staff members. “REMI apologises for any lack of communication in recent weeks. We ask you to rely on any reports to creditors and not rely on any speculation you may hear.”
The administrator’s report showed that Mr Prestige had $45 million worth of funds “written” while he was managing partner. It also showed that Peter Terrill, who was formerly a director of the business, had $83 million.
The Future of REMI Capital
When appointed as administrator, Mr Baskerville said one of the solutions was a Deed of Company Arrangement (DoCA) proposed by the directors. The Australian Securities & Investments Commission notes a DoCA attempts to maximise the chances of the company to continue to operate and aims to provide a better return for creditors than an immediate winding up of the business.
Mr Baskerville said current options being explored included undertaking a marketing campaign to sell the properties in situ or seeking a refinance package.
If you are a former client of REMI Capital, and you are concerned that you may have suffered losses, we encourage you to telephone us at 1300 433 533 or email us at enquiry@fdlegal.com.au to discuss your situation and rights of redress.
