Wed, 28 Mar 2012 | ADMINISTRATION
London & Westcountry Estates has entered administration following a failure to reach an agreement with the private equity firm Blackstone that provides the majority of its credit. As a result, Ernst & Young have been called in and began to remove paperwork and other items from the firm's base in Plymouth earlier this week.
The administrators confirmed to the Plymouth Herald that they intends to sell the company and its assets, despite the fact that director Bruce Priday claims the firm remains profitable and well managed.
London & Westcountry Estates was established in 1983 by Mike and Diane Hockin. It operates 27 business parks, reaching from Cornwall to Somerset and housing around 300 tenants, the majority of whom are small businesses.
Mr Priday noted that problems with the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are largely to blame for the business's problems.
He told the Herald that a £57 million loan was taken out with RBS back in 2008 in order to finance an expansion. The loan was established as a “callable libor swap option”, which should have protected against upward movements in interest rates by using a fixed rate.
However, the Bank of England soon reduced the base rate to just 0.5 per cent, leaving the property group tied into a higher rate of interest than it had planned for and a charge of £11 million should it wish to exit from the loan arrangement.
“There are lots of businesses in the South West that were flogged this derivative [by RBS] and it's completely inappropriate,” he remarked.
Highly-regarded CQC approved care home with long established reputation and referral client base operating from extensive detached premises offering 25 mostly ensuite ground-floor rooms, spacious and superbly fitted communal, and ancillary areas in q...
Long-established with impressive reputation and 'blue chip' private/public sector client base offering virtually one stop range of professional and client-focused computer cabling and networking services from extremely well fitted office and storage...
Outstanding opportunity to acquire impressive seafront detached single-storey premises in large grounds with spacious 70-cover restaurant.
FREEHOLD
03
|
May
|
Logistics firm acquires pair of Derbyshire businesses | BUSINESS SALE
A logistics firm headquartered in Preston has acquired a pai...
02
|
May
|
Two country hotels sold following confidential marketing process | COMMERCIAL PROPERTY
Two country hotels in the South East of England have been so...
02
|
May
|
Two South East accountancy firms agree to merge | MERGER
Two accountancy firms based in the South East have announced...
Business Sale Report is your complete solution to finding great acquisition opportunities.
Join today to receive:
All this and much more, including the latest M&A news and exclusive resources
We can help you capitalise on insolvent businesses. We list UK businesses in administration, liquidation and with winding up petitions daily. Ensuring our members never miss out on an opportunity
Please choose your settings for this site below. For more information please read our Cookie Policy
These cookies are necessary for our website to function properly and provide you with access to all features.
These are analytics cookies that help us to improve the way our website works.
These are used to improve the functional performance of the website and make it easier for you to use.