* Files for Chap. 11 ahead of $1.1 bln Mar. 28 maturity
* Blames hedge funds for failure of debt talks
* Aims to complete restructuring as soon as possible
* Still manages $7.4 bln of assets; no immediate sale plans
By David French and Dinesh Nair
DUBAI, March 19 (Reuters) – Bahrain investment house
Arcapita has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
protection in the United States after it was unable to reach a
$1.1 billion debt deal with creditors, it said on Monday – a
first for an indebted Gulf-based entity.
Arcapita blamed non-bank creditors – hedge funds, in other
words – for its inability to strike a deal on its proposal to
delay repayments by three years.
“The actions of certain non-bank creditors have precluded
Arcapita from reaching such a consensual resolution before the
March 28 maturity date, jeopardizing Arcapita’s ability to
satisfy its fiduciary duties to its stakeholders,” Chief
Executive Atif Abdulmalik said in a statement.
The filing will allow for a “comprehensive restructuring
that rationalizes Arcapita’s capital structure and maximizes
recoveries to creditors and other stakeholders,” the firm said
in the statement.
Continued…
