Nothing to do with finance or the GCC but brilliant. Mit "Henry de Winter" und Bobby.
Here's the link to BHS website.
Here's the link to BHS website.
The Financial Sector in the GCC
"We have been left with no option following numerous attempts to come to a mutually-beneficial agreement with the client to right the debts outstanding since March and provide comfort that future dues would be paid when due," he said.
"Unfortunately, it is reported that the client could not provide this due to their current and longer-term financial outlook."
"The credit ratings agency downgraded Dubai Holding Commercial Operations Group (DHCOG) by one notch on its rating scale to “B2” from “B1”and kept it on review for another drop. DHCOG, which has large holdings in the hospitality, business parks and property sectors, was unavailable for comment. The group was downgraded to “B1” last December, a rating already considered below investment grade."You'll recall that last January, Dubai Holding had excoriated S&P for its:
The report has three main parts:The sector lost over USD 2 bn in 2009 following a monstrous loss of upwards of USD 3 bn in 2008, and continues to post an aggregate loss of over USD 100 mn in 1Q10 (an annual run rate of USD 400 mn). The losses are tied to impaired assets which companies have been writing-off in an attempt to restore some health to their balance sheets. Liquidity and over-leverage have also been an issue for the sector, whose assets are often comprised of difficult to value and illiquid investments which are then pledged as collateral against further borrowings. These issues were not bothersome during the boom periods; however, when the global financial crisis hit, it exposed the sector’s vulnerabilities resulting in a massive destruction of wealth.
The problem arises in the valuation method used in this segment which can be vague at best and completely misrepresentative of “actual” value in the worst case. By misrepresenting the fair value of Assets Available for Sale, a company can inflate its Fair Value Reserve (and therefore Equity figure) by booking Unrealized Gains, which would produce a lower leverage ratio."Earlier post on this topic here.
"I'm not worried about the company, the company has got the wealth. So they have something, and they will come back very very quickly."Though I'll confess I'm not so confident about HA collecting its receivable.
The al Gosaibi family of Saudi Arabia is prepared to sell much of its 70-year-old business empire to help pay its creditors, informed sources say.
Trowers & Hamlins partner Abdullah Mutawi, who is leading the asset realisation strategy, said it was a significant development.As I noted in yesterday's post about First Gulf Bank's lawsuit against AHAB, there seems to have been a change in the dynamic of this story. The focus is now on AHAB's behavior - both in terms of responsiveness to requests from creditors as well as its role in the collapse.
"This is the first time AHAB has been compelled to reveal details of any of its bank accounts," he said.
"It is particularly significant because AHAB has repeatedly refused to hand over important information relating to the operation of the account.
"The account is important because a substantial portion of TIBC's funds were remitted to it and the information should help reveal the ultimate destination of those funds."
"The recession is a global phenomenon and I do not think that we in Dubai fear it, but instead we consider it a challenge."It's often said that true progress and development comes by challenging oneself. Sadly, other members of the GCC, like Qatar, apparently don't feel up to challenging themselves in quite the way that Dubai is challenging itself.
While in reference to Dubai World, he adds: "I'm not worried about the company, the company has got the wealth. So they have something, and they will come back very very quickly."
Prior to the crisis, for instance, supervisors relied excessively on financial firms’ own risk analysis and internal controls. In broad terms, they relied heavily on the self-disciplining qualities of markets. In other words, supervisors were insufficiently intrusive and skeptical.What could possibly go wrong with allowing firms to police themselves? Not just allowing them to judge when they had "broken" a prudential limit, but allowing them to measure whether they had broken it or not. And, we hear yet again about the self disciplining qualities of markets - which is the regulators' equivalent of the implicit guarantee.