A creditor of Dubai-based Abraaj has started legal proceedings in the Cayman Islands seeking the restructuring of the private equity firm’s liabilities.
Auctus is the second creditor, after Kuwait's Public Institution for Social Security (PIFSS), to start legal action in the Cayman Islands, where Abraaj Holdings is registered.
In a statement to Reuters from its representatives, legal firm Kobre & Kim, Auctus Fund said it has filed an application that seeks the appointment of "court-approved professionals in the Cayman Islands" to manage the restructuring process.
Auctus said it holds a large credit position in Abraaj Holdings and its investment arm, Abraaj Investment Management Limited.
The moves by the two creditors come amid Abraaj's own plan to file for provisional liquidation in the Cayman Islands before a hearing on a petition to wind up a company.
This followed the Kuwaiti fund's refusal this month to agree to a proposed debt freeze, complicating Abraaj's efforts to sell its investment management business to New York-based Cerberus Capital Management.
Abraaj declined to comment.
Abraaj has been trying to stem the fallout from a row with four of its investors, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the International Finance Corp (IFC), over how it used their money in a $1 billion healthcare fund.
Abraaj, the Middle East and North Africa's largest private equity firm, denies any wrongdoing.
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Read more:
UAE's securities regulator working with DFSA on Abraaj impact on investors
Deloitte releases review of Abraaj $1bn fund
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Summary findings of a review carried out by Deloitte, which was hired by Abraaj to examine its business, showed that a cash shortage led the firm to "commingle" investor money with its own money, according to a document seen by Reuters.
Abraaj, with debts estimated at over $1bn, met its creditors earlier this month to reach a standstill deal, which the firm said was backed by the vast majority of its lenders, to facilitate the sale of its investment management business to Cerberus.
However the Kuwaiti fund, an unsecured creditor, refused to join secured creditors in the proposed debt freeze agreement.
PIFSS said it would see through "till the end" a petition filed in the Cayman Islands for the liquidation and winding up of Abraaj Holdings after it defaulted on a $100 million loan.
In its statement, Auctus Fund said it was seeking an orderly restructuring "in order to avoid value destruction that would likely occur in the kind of process sought by PIFSS”.
The fund said it "urgently" filed its application in response to the PIFSS’s winding up petition and “in an attempt to protect the interests of the broadest possible stakeholder base of the Abraaj entities in the UAE and elsewhere.”
Auctus said it is aware that Abraaj’s creditors are having discussions with the parties interested in acquiring Abraaj’s investment platform and that it hoped such an “arrangement, under the oversight of the Cayman courts, will encourage and allow for a speedy, constructive and consensual conclusion of these matters.”
One source said a draft of Abraaj's application for provisional liquidation has been prepared and must be filed before June 29, when the next hearing of the PIFSS case is scheduled at the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.
J%20Street%20Polling%20Results
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Company%20Profile
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Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
Company%20Profile
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Generational responses to the pandemic
Devesh Mamtani from Century Financial believes the cash-hoarding tendency of each generation is influenced by what stage of the employment cycle they are in. He offers the following insights:
Baby boomers (those born before 1964): Owing to market uncertainty and the need to survive amid competition, many in this generation are looking for options to hoard more cash and increase their overall savings/investments towards risk-free assets.
Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980): Gen X is currently in its prime working years. With their personal and family finances taking a hit, Generation X is looking at multiple options, including taking out short-term loan facilities with competitive interest rates instead of dipping into their savings account.
Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996): This market situation is giving them a valuable lesson about investing early. Many millennials who had previously not saved or invested are looking to start doing so now.
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Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Runners up: Bahrain
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Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Jebel Ali Dragons
West Asia Premiership
Winners: Jebel Ali Dragons
Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
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Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Runners up: Dubai Exiles
UAE Premiership
Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
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Directed by: Anthony Mandler
Starring: Kelvin Harrison Jr., John David Washington
3/5
Confirmed%20bouts%20(more%20to%20be%20added)
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group