/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR

/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/000712.mbx T R O U B L E D C O M P A N Y R E P O R T E R E U R O P E Wednesday, July 12, 2000, Vol. 1, No. 46 Headlines F R A N C E SAM: Controlling Stake in French Arm Sold G E R M A N Y RICARDO.DE: PwC Study Says Possible Bankruptcy in Two Years IXOS SOFTWARE: 83.9% Plunge in Shares Since March IXOS SOFTWARE: Operating Loss Seen for 2000 R U S S I A IAPO: A Note of Caution Despite Asset Increase S L O V A K I A (S L O V A K R E P U B L I C) DOPRAVNA BANKA: Fourth Bank Collapse in 10 Months SLOVENSKE ELEKTRARNE: Government Grants 4.1 Billion Loan U N I T E D K I N G D O M 3SL LTD: Liquidation Proceedings AJR INTERNATIONAL: Liquidation Proceedings AHA TRAINING: Liquidation Proceedings ALCAN METAL: Liquidation Proceedings ANDREW STEVENS: Liquidation Proceedings ASHDALE CONCRETE: Liquidation Proceedings BENDRIVE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings BOS RECRUITMENT: Liquidation Proceedings COMMON GROUNDS: Liquidation Proceedings DAVID DEBRIS: Liquidation Proceedings DRESSRIGHT LTD: Liquidation Proceedings EDGE ADVERTISING: Liquidation Proceedings ELMDENE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings EMPIRE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings FOREST FLOORS: Liquidation Proceedings HUGHES SAFE: Liquidation Proceedings IMAGEGLADE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings INFANT CARE: Liquidation Proceedings LASUN GRAPHICS: Liquidation Proceedings LAURA ASHLEY: Retailer Sells 2.5 Million Shares LLYN WOODCRAFTS: Liquidation Proceedings LOUVRE TECHNIK: Liquidation Proceedings LYNX: UK Group Endangered MORUPLAST LTD: Liquidation Proceedings NANS PANTRY: Liquidation Proceedings NORTH POLE: Liquidation Proceedings ORBITAL DISTRIBUTION: Liquidation Proceedings OWEN-GOULD LTD: Liquidation Proceedings PLUMBRITE HEAT: Liquidation Proceedings PROBE MARKET: Liquidation Proceedings RMPR LTD: Liquidation Proceedings RAPIDE LIGHTWEIGHT: Liquidation Proceedings REKLUF TRADING: Liquidation Proceedings RELAY DISTRIBUTION: Liquidation Proceedings RIPLEYS PRINTERS: Liquidation Proceedings TILEPORT: Liquidation Proceedings TOTAL SYSTEMS: Final Dividend Scrapped TOTAL SYSTEMS: Board Optimistic In Spite of Problems UL LEISURE: Liquidation Proceedings VERVE MODEL: Liquidation Proceedings WOOD FLOORS: Liquidation Proceedings =========== F R A N C E =========== SAM: Controlling Stake in French Arm Sold ------------------------------ THE FINANCIAL TIMES, July 9, 2000 ASW, the Cardiff-based steel group, is to retrench in the UK by selling its controlling stake in its French subsidiary SAM, which makes wire rods for concrete reinforcement, to the Italian Riva Acciaio group. The sale comes after five years of ownership, in which ASW has been frustrated by volatile trading and an inability to gain access to SAM's cashflow. It will leave ASW with plants in Cardiff and Sheerness and the group plans to continue its rationalisation programme, and look for acquisitions, in the UK. ASW owns 85.7 per cent of SAM, which is valued at ?106m in the transaction. Usinor, the French steel concern, is also selling its 14.3 per cent stake. The net proceeds to ASW, after expenses, will be ?82m, which will be used initially to reduce debt and repay loan notes held by Candover Partners. Candover will receive ?42m to redeem in full its loan notes at a 13.5 per cent premium over their nominal value. Candover supported ASW's acquisition last year of Co-Steel Sheerness and its loan notes could have converted into a 45 per cent stake in ASW. Those rights will now lapse and be replaced with warrants over 10 per cent of the equity at 21p, compared to Friday's closing price of 11- 1/4p, valuing the group at ?24m. Candover's representative will also step down from the ASW board. ASW bought SAM in 1995 but has been unable to take advantage of its cashflow because of restrictions imposed on the subsidiary by debt providers. Graham Mackenzie, ASW chief executive, said: "We feel that we have sold our stake in SAM at a very good price at the top of the market. The construction sector is very buoyant at the moment and we can now look at using the cash from the sale to make several acquisitions from bolt-ons to bigger transactions." The deal is expected to be completed by the end of next month. ============= G E R M A N Y ============= RICARDO.DE: PwC Study Says Possible Bankruptcy in Two Years ----------------------------------------------------------- FT MARKETWATCH, July 7, 2000 Eight Internet companies listed on Frankfurt's Neuer Markt are likely to run out of cash within two years, a study by consultancy PriceWaterhouseCoopers said, without naming the companies. "Platow Brief," a German newsletter for investors, identified the companies, which are likely to meet the criteria of PWC's model of "Burn Rate.com companies." Many of the stocks fell sharply in Europe, and in some instances, on Nasdaq, as the report filtered out into the market. The report dragged the Neuer Markt down 0.6 percent when other European markets were firming on better than expected U.S. jobs data. The model is based on the assumption that these companies are making a loss of one German mark for every mark they make in sales. The accountants' report is the latest of several that question the business models of Internet start-up companies. According to Platow, the companies are Gigabell, Cybernet, Ebookers.com, Ricardo.de, Fortune City.com, Artnet.com, Musicmusicmusic and Buch.de. The CEO of Internet bookshop Buch.de, Michael Urban, has told Platow that PWC informed him his company wasn't on the list. Pricewaterhouse refuses to name the 8 firms Still, PWC declined to confirm that these are the companies facing cash problems in the next 24 months. The firm said it hasn't released the names to anybody, not even their own clients. Shares of Cybernet fell 11.4 percent, the U.K's Ebookers dropped 17.5 percent, Fortune City dived 3 percent, Musicmusicmusic shed 15.6 percent, Arnet dropped 7.8 percent and Ricardo dipped 12.3 percent. Unaffected by the news, Buch.de rose 7.5 percent and Gigabell gained 8.9 percent. Ebookers' shares also dropped sharply on Nasdaq Friday. Shares of the British Internet auction house QXL.com, which recently announced a merger with Ricardo.de, also fell 1.8 percent. Frankfurt's Neuer Markt dropped 0.6 percent in late trading on Friday, even as all other European markets traded higher. Ricardo says it's got no cash problem "We are having enough cash available for the next two years," a Ricardo.de spokesman told FTMarketWatch, commenting on the report. A spokesperson for U.K.-based Arnet said "we will need more financing and we are in contact with the marketplace and we are confident that we will obtain the money we need." She said the company had already pointed that out in its last quarterly report. None of the other companies were immediately available to comment. Platow pointed out that Gigabell's financial situation was most difficult, even though the shares rose on Friday. Within three months, their reserves have shrunk to 2.5 million marks, from 6.5 million before. At the same time, Gigabell's losses increased to 10 million marks, on sales of 10.9 million marks, said Platow. IXOS SOFTWARE: 83.9% Plunge in Shares Since March ------------------------------ THE EUROPEAN INVESTOR, July 10, 2000 BRUSSELS -- Shares for German document management specialists IXOS Software AG (XOS.FNM) continued their downward spiral on Frankfurt's Neuer Markt despite the company's apparent positive preliminary fourth-quarter results. IXOS reported 28.6 million euros in revenue for the fourth quarter ending June 30, 2000. The company expects revenues of 107.4 million euros for the current fiscal year, a 12% increase from last year. According to Coleen Kaiser, software and e-commerce analyst at Merrill Lynch Global Securities, the company has not performed well in the current business year. "They missed our revenue numbers by about 2 million euros," she told EIC News. "We had initially estimated revenues of 38 million euros and then we took targets down to 31 million euros. Investors began selling off shares when IXOS missed its third- quarter revenue targets in March, according to Kaiser. On Frankfurt's Neuer Markt, IXOS' shares have plunged 83.9% since then. Kaiser said she believed the company was having difficulties mainly because the document management business is not as lucrative as it used to be. "They also have some sales issues, and they are going from the old economy to new economy." IXOS also reported that chief financial officer, Vijay Sondhi, and the head of worldwide sales and marketing, Willy Soehngen have resigned. They will be replaced by Juerg Wyttenback and Herbert Gruenwald. The company also replaced their CEO, appointing Robert Hoog on June 1. The analyst sees this change as positive, though Sondhi "has been driving the company, but the numbers haven't held up recently." In the future, IXOS intends to develop and market a new range of document management software while reinforcing its existing products. The company is currently restructuring by redirecting its investments, which means a non-recurring charge of approximately 5.0 million euros that will lead to an operating loss in the fourth quarter. In a statement IXOS said; "We believe that these restructuring measures will drive a return to profitability and that the implementation of this program will have a positive impact on revenue and earnings growth in the fiscal year 2000/2001. "We don't think (IXOS) is an interesting buy for the next few quarters." Merrill Lynch is currently rating the shares as "neutral", "which is practically 'hold,'" said Kaiser. IXOS SOFTWARE: Operating Loss Seen for 2000 ------------------------------ HANDELSBLATT, July 10, 2000 Shares in German Nemax-50 listed Ixos Software AG tumbled more than 15% Monday after the software company forecast an operating loss for 2000, and its chief financial officer resigned. At 1530 GMT shares of Ixos were down 19.3% at 11.40 euros after it reported that a one-time charge of 5.0 million euros this year would lead to an operating loss. The slide was further fuelled by news of the resignation of Ixos' deputy chairman and chief Financial officer Vijay Sondhi. The stock closed the session down 15.43% at 11.95 euros. This news eclipsed Ixos' decision to cut costs and focus on its core businesses as part of a major overhaul. While Sondhi's departure is seen as a typical reaction to a new chief executive officer taking the helm, the move still rattled the market. "It's surprising," Merck Finck analyst Oliver Wrangel said, "it's the Big Bang effect after recent bad figures and the shares' decline." Ixos' shares have fallen almost 60% in the last three months and stand well off its 52-week high of 104.20 euros. Robert Hoog, the former president of Fujitsu Siemens Computers, took over as Ixos' CEO in April. Hoog wanted to install his own team, Wrangel said. "But it won't be easy to change quickly and positively," he added. Another management change came with J?rg Wyttenbach, deputy president of EMEA Region, taking over Worldwide Sales and Marketing after Willy S"hngen quit the post. Ixos' cost-cutting plans, which include shedding its Ixos Anwendungssoftware GmbH unit in Leipzig, were ignored Monday. Merrill Lynch and HypoVereinsbank issued downgrades on the company after the resignation and disappointing results. Wrangel of Merck Finck said Sondhi, who headed up Ixos' initial public offering, had made "a good impression" with investors. Merck Finck is keeping its "market performer" rating as it waits for final full-year data on August 16. Sondhi's exit marked a sign of the "winds of change" within the software making company, Ixos said. "It was time for the move," Ixos company press spokeswoman Krista Kepler said, "and for the company to operate under its new form and structure." Herbert Gr?nwald, Ixos deputy president of Corporate Finance, will take over as acting CFO for the next three to six months, while the company looks outside the organization for a new CFO, Kepler said. =========== R U S S I A =========== IAPO: A Note of Caution Despite Asset Increase ------------------------------ Concise Aerospace, July 10, 2000 Andrey Fedorov, President of IAPO in Irkutsk, while upbeat about the entity's short-term prospects at the company's recent AGM, raised a note of caution for the producer's future despite saying that 1999 had marked the transition from survival to relative stability. The assets of IAPO grew by 4.296 billion rubles ($171m) in 1999, primarily current assets which tripled, reflecting the plant's improved solvency through increased revenues. According to Federov however, these figures should not mask the potentially crippling lack of long term and working capital in the business. The entity's accounts receivable increased by five-fold at the end of 1999, reflecting the delays of payment for the delivery of aircraft to India in October 1999, which were finally made in the first quarter of 2000. Federal debts to IAPO have however been cleared. The eleven-fold increase of revenues was accompanied by a cut in the plant's debtors days by a factor of four according to the management. The poor performance in accounts receivable was somewhat offset by a more than two-fold growth in sales. As of January 2000, the sales were 5,411m rubles. The plant saw a 70% increase in inventory to 1974m rubles ($79m) during the year as the company geared up to meet ongoing orders in both 1999 and 2000 and avoid shortfalls in critical material inventory. The major component of the growth was the 566m rubles invested in what is described as 'raw material', which given the highly integrated nature of Russian aircraft production could mean anything, but the assumption is metal. Work in progress also grew by 245m rubles, while accounts payable increased by 2.5 times to over 2 billion rubles. The entity's long-term investments, primarily financial instruments and equity, rose by 12% to 315 m rubles. Investments were made in 24 companies and banks, although little detail is available about the exact nature of the investments. The investments include ONEXIM Bank, ZAO Russian Avionics, ZAO Betair, Rumyantsev NPO, FTK Aerokom, Incombank, Prombank, ZAO Aerocom and Beriev FTK. The rational for the investment strategy was not explained, but some of the investments are obvious driven by the need to guarantee suppliers and services. IAPO's lending to other enterprises in the period included short- term loans of 127m rubles (mainly to AO Betair, the Swiss registered company responsible for the Be-200) and short-term notes for 37m rubles and long-term loans of 1.832 billion rubles. Overall, the plant, despite its significant improvement in top line performance incurred losses of 607m rubles due to the dramatic impact of exchange rate losses amounting to 1,206m rubles loss, although this is a significant decline on the losses recorded in 1998. Andrey Fedorov has been quoted as saying 'under the long term Su- 30MKI contract with India, the plant received a proportion of the contract in the form of advances in 1997, 1998, and 1999 at the exchange rates upon the day of acceptance of the orders, with deliveries of aircraft though to 2003. The loss is due to the fact that at the moment of delivery, the payment will be recorded at the current exchange rate. The deficiency of the reporting in reflecting the exchange movements (under Russian accounting standards) makes the plant reflect large book losses in its results, and reduces capital available for investment and for dividends to shareholders'. This is likely to continue as a trend for two to three according to Federov. Federov remains concerned about the future and intimated that despite the portfolio of successful products made up of the Su- 30, Su-27 and Be-200 on both domestic and international markets, there remain few ongoing orders after 2001. To stabilize future revenues, the plant has to continue to invest in the upgrade and development of these aircraft and widen the company's aerospace products, as well as looking to produce and provide products and service in non-core areas. IAPO, as a result of this narrow focus of revenue and ultimately potential profit, says that it is considering a number of undisclosed strategic alliances and potential mergers to assure the viability of the entity, reflecting government policy. This is a curious statement from the head of a entity that has been less than enthusiastic in embracing total incorporation within the Sukhoi joint stock company. To succeed in developing new products, Federov believes they must have development funds of at least $70m to meet demands over the next three to four years. The funding of such developments should not simply come from borrowing, but should be significantly contributed by cost savings and efficiency from within the organization. This may signal his intention to tackle the issue of workforce. Currently, IAPO's order book is the largest in Russia's aerospace industry but despite this fact, the entity continues to have funding difficulties. The contracts with China and the Ministry of Emergency Situations are financed from the federal budget, which is an inconsistent payer. Payments are regularly delayed by six months, and the Ministry of Defense has paid its debts since 1997. Also, despite the large size of the Indian contract, the advances have been spent and there remain significant funding requirements for the ongoing design work. The issue of working capital continues to concern Federov, who argues that the lack of it may stop them meeting their orders in 2001. In 2000, IAPO plans to deliver the Su-27UBK to China, provide Su-30MKI prototypes to OKB Sukhoi for flight tests, and take the second prototype of Be-200 to OKB Beriev for the continuation of the flight tests for certification This will be undertaken with the aircraft's first customer and serial production of the aircraft and further deliveries to the Ministry of Emergency Situations. ================================================ S L O V A K I A (S L O V A K R E P U B L I C) ================================================ DOPRAVNA BANKA: Fourth Bank Collapse in 10 Months ------------------------------ THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR, July 10, 2000 Only 24 hours after board members resigned in frustration over shareholder apathy towards a capital hike, the medium-sized bank Dopravn banka was put under a caretaker administration by the central bank. In a July 1 statement, the National Bank of Slovakia (NBS) said that that developments at the bank had proved that it was unable to cope with increasing losses, and that it had also failed to create sufficient provisions to cover classified loans. The bank`s collapse comes only weeks after the government extended a controversial 2.5 billion Slovak crown ($56 million) loan to Dev�n banka to bail it out of its liquidity crisis, and has left the central bank scrambling to find an investor for the crumbling Dopravn . Dopravn is the fourth Slovak bank to fall in the last year, following AG Banka, Priemyseln banka and Slovensk kreditn banka. "Investors will carry out the clean-up process of Dopravn banka," said NBS Governor Mari n Jusko at a press conference on July 4. "We have no exact deadline for this, but we don`t want to prolong the process of finding an investor. We require from any investor both transparency and money to raise capital," he added. Dopravn began its search for 500 million crowns ($11 million) for a capital raise more than a year ago, and while the bank`s problems were well known, it had been hoped that the entry of a strategic investor would lead to the capital raise and also provide the stability and experience needed to turn Dopravn `s fortunes around. However, at a shareholder meeting June 30, board members were left disappointed after failure to reach a decision on an investor. Four companies had expressed interest in the bank - J&T Finance Group, Horizont o.c.p., the Drukos firm and the Alfa Finanz investment fund. Central bank spokesman J n Onda told The Slovak Spectator July 4 that the NBS had identified "potential investors," but refused to comment on who those investors were. Analysts have expressed doubt that there would be much interest in Dopravn banka. "It`s not a great bank and it will be really difficult to find an investor. It is not completely unrealistic, but unlikely," said Tom s Kmet, banking sector analyst at state- owned bank Slovensk sporitelna. Only days before the central bank`s action, analysts had warned that some financial houses were running into liquidity problems, raising further questions over the NBS`s approach to banks known to be in trouble. "With this bank the NBS was a bit quicker than it has been before, but it still could have done more in the sector as a whole," Kmet said. However, the central bank has claimed that it is unable to do more to protect smaller banks like Dopravn banka under current banking sector legislation - a fact government officials have admitted. Juraj Rencko, economic advisor to Finance Minister Brigita Schm"gnerov , said that planned changes to procedures and legislation within the banking sector would "make it easier for the central bank to spot problems earlier and manage the sector better." He also defended the NBS`s performance so far: "Bank supervision is a difficult and relatively new task [in Slovakia] and needs specific skills and procedures. The NBS has done a lot of work in this field but there is room for improvement." Dopravn currently has 50,000 deposit accounts, primary deposits from non-banking entities of 2.4 billion crowns, and a loan portfolio of 1.6 billion crowns. Its largest shareholder is Slovensk sporitelna with 45% while state-controlled bank Investicn a rozvojov banka also has a 15% stake in Dopravn . At the end of 1999, Dopravn banka`s total assets stood at 3.5 billion crowns with registered capital of 800 million crowns. It had a 546 million crown loss at the end of 1998. Following the caretaker administration decision, concerns re- surfaced over the Deposit Protection Fund, set up to cover deposits in collapsed banks. Under the terms of the Fund, all banks pay levies to create a reserve pool for repaying a certain proportion of client deposit accounts at failed banks - a scheme that has drawn criticism from larger successful banks as being unfair. However, the government has rejected the criticism. "Obviously in the medium-term the clean-up of Dopravn will be at the additional cost of the whole banking sector. But the situation of the Fund needs to be seen in the long-term. It is there for everyone to benefit from in the long-term," said Rencko. Jusko warned that if there was no success in finding an investor for Dopravna banka then the NBS would be forced to consider options such as bankruptcy, something that would mean more Deposit Protection Fund pay-outs. The Fund, following payments made out after the collapse of AG Banka, is under serious pressure and would be unable to cover these payments. The NBS, Jusko said, would provide a loan to the Fund under these circumstances. The banking sector`s woes deepened with the news that the NBS`s regular two-week report on the minimum reserves of banks on June 30 found that the banking sector had once again failed to meet the required reserve level, running at only 98.13% for the last two weeks of the month. But Jusko was adamant that Dopravn was the last bank that would be put under caretaker administration. "Dopravn banka was the last of these cases," said Jusko. SLOVENSKE ELEKTRARNE: Government Grants 4.1 Billion Loan ------------------------------ THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR, July 10, 2000 The government June 28 provided a guarantee for a 4.1 billion Slovak crown ($91.7 million) loan to the monopoly power monolith Slovensk, elektr rne (SE) in a bid to clean up SE`s non- performing loan portfolio and boost the company`s cashflow. According to government officials, a series of state-guaranteed loans for SE had been planned in advance in order to restructure the company`s loan portfolio before SE`s transformation and subsequent privatisation process begins in January next year. "It will help the SE loan portfolio to recover by replacing old and sometimes unfavourable loans which SE took in the past," said Peter Benc�rik, a spokesman for Economy Minister Lubom�r Harach. The five-year loan, with an 11.7% interest rate, will be provided by the state-owned bank Slovensk sporitelna, and is the third government-guaranteed loan extended to SE this year. In total, the government has guaranteed loans in the value of 8.1 billion crowns ($180 million) for the electricity producer in 2000. Despite the size of the loan, the move has been widely praised as a solid boost to the company, aimed at stabilising the power utility until a foreign investor can be found. "It is better to put a company on the block when it is clean and functioning, rather than when it is under financial presssure," said Michal Ben k, a partner with Bratislava-based mergers and acqusitions firm Navigator. SE made a profit of almost 2 billion crowns ($44.7 million) for the first quarter of this year - a massive turnaround on the same period last year when the company found itself 2.1 billion crowns ($47 million) in the red. Despite the positive figures, Ben k said that SE`s poor recent economic performance and tight cashflow were thorns in the company`s side, and added that the fact the utility needed such huge loans were evidence of real financial troubles. "With these loans we can create a more realistic picture of where SE is now. It`s the price that has to be paid for the slow restructuring process in the company," Ben k said. Ben k explained that following three hefty hikes in electricity prices in the last year, SE had had few problems turning a profit, but given the investments and other loans the company has to pay back, SE`s cashflow had come under pressure. "These three [profit, investments and loans] are not harmonised in the case of SE`s cashflow. The reason for this is that some SE projects have been carried out slower than was expected and some were even cancelled," Ben k said. The Economy Ministry recently criticised the extent of SE`s non-performing investments, which amount to hundreds of billions of crowns related chiefly to the Mochovce nuclear power plant. The ministry also noted that SE would have to cover expensive projects such as the shut-down of the V-1 reactor block of another power plant in Jaslovsk, Bohunice, and was still on the hook for debts incurred in the operation of the Gabc�kovo hydroelectric dam. At a July 3 meeting, Slovakia`s `economic` ministers called for an improvement in the company`s performance. However, a full report on SE`s finances has been classified confidential and had an information embargo slapped on it. Recently appointed SE Director Vincent Pill r has said that privatisation is the best cure for SE`s economic troubles. "SE`s indebtness can only be solved by the entrance of a strong strategic investor who will raise SE in the eyes of our creditors," Pill r said. The concept for SE`s transformation prepared by the Economy Ministry envisages the separation of SE and its heating utilities and regional distribution outlets - Z padoslovensk,, Stredoslovensk, and Vychodoslovensk, energetick, z vody - and the transformation of the latter into joint stock companies in January next year. A privatisation manager, slated to be chosen later this year, will then help the government to privatise a 49% stake in each of these regional utilities. SE will then be stripped of everything except its energy production facilities, including the controversial power plants in Mochovce and Jaslovsk, Bohunice. For now, Ben k said, the situation in SE has slightly improved following the recall of former director Stefan Kosovan and other supervisory and directors` board members in March this year. The move followed a four month audit of SE carried out by the Economy Ministry, which revealed serious shortcomings in the way SE handled tenders, as well as bad financial discipline and poor budgetary management. =========================== U N I T E D K I N G D O M =========================== 3SL LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: 3SL Ltd Company No: 1693621 Com. Business: Computer Sales Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: John P Bateman IPno: 6716 Michael T Seery 5931 Firm Name: KPMG Address: Festival Way City Postcode: Stoke-on-Trent ST1 5TA AJR INTERNATIONAL: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: A J R International (UK) Ltd Company No: 1914300 Com. Business: Parcel Couriers Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Solomon Cohen IPno: 1751 Firm Name: Morley & Scott Address: Great Central House Great Central Avenue City Postcode: South Ruislip HA4 6TS AHA TRAINING: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: AHA Training Ltd Company No: 3744109 Com. Business: Sale/Communication Instructors Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Members Liquidators: Rosalind M Hilton IPno: 8604 Firm Name: Adcrofts Address: 7-9 Wilkinson Avenue City Postcode: Blackpool FY3 9XG ALCAN METAL: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Alcan Metal Centres Ltd Company No: SC26939 Com. Business: Dormant Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Members Appointed by: Members Liquidators: Colin G Bird IPno: 1257 Adrian R Stanway 2665 Firm Name: PricewaterhouseCoopers Address: Plumtree Court City Postcode: London EC4A 4HT ANDREW STEVENS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Andrew Stevens Construction Ltd Company No: 3138754 Com. Business: Construction Co Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Alan Simon IPno: 8635 Firm Name: Langley & Partners Address: Langley House Park Road City Postcode: London N2 8EX ASHDALE CONCRETE: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Ashdale Concrete Ltd Company No: 1537771 Com. Business: Concrete Repairs Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Peter Sargent IPno: 8636 Firm Name: Sargent & Co Address: 4 Wards End City Postcode: Halifax HX1 1BX BENDRIVE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Bendrive Ltd Company No: 2761014 Com. Business: Motor Parts Factors Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors Liquidators: Jonathan E Avery-Gee IPno: 1549 Firm Name: Kay Johnson Gee Address: Griffin Court 201 Chapel Street City Postcode: Salford M3 5EQ BOS RECRUITMENT: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Bos Recruitment Ltd Company No: 3804206 Com. Business: Recruitment Agency Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors Liquidators: David E Mond IPno: 2340 Firm Name: Hodgsons Address: George House 48 George Street City Postcode: Manchester M1 4HF COMMON GROUNDS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Common Grounds Scotland Ltd Company No: SC Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors Liquidators: Maureen E Leslie Firm Name: HLB Kidsons Address: 23 Queen Street City Postcode: Edinburgh EH2 1JX DAVID DEBRIS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: David Debris Ltd Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Members Appointed by: Members Liquidators: Sophie Dillon Address: "Cranog" Kilgobbin Road City Postcode: Sandyford DRESSRIGHT LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Dressright Ltd Company No: 254122 Com. Business: CMT/Wholesale Ladies Clothing Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Kikis Kallis IPno: 4692 Firm Name: Kallis & Co Address: Mountview Court 1148 High Road Whetstone City Postcode: London N20 0RA EDGE ADVERTISING: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Edge Advertising & Design Ltd - The Company No: 2489554 Com. Business: Paper/Printing/Publishing Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: S D Swaden IPno: 2719 Firm Name: Fisher Curtis Address: 1 Great Cumberland Place City Postcode: London W1H 8LE ELMDENE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Elmdene Ltd Company No: 2561908 Com. Business: Mens Dresswear Hire Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: T Papanicola IPno: 5496 Firm Name: Langley & Partners Address: Langley House Park Road City Postcode: London N2 8EX EMPIRE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Empire Ltd Company No: IR Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors Liquidators: Michael Butler Firm Name: Butler & Co Address: 49 Fitzwilliam Square City Postcode: Dublin 2 FOREST FLOORS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Forest Floors Ltd Company No: 3621052 Com. Business: Import/Bale Hardwood Timber Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors Liquidators: Kian Seng Tan IPno: 8032 Firm Name: K S Tan & Co Address: 10-12 New College Parade Finchley Road City Postcode: London NW3 5EP HUGHES SAFE: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Hughes Safe Transport Ltd Company No: IR Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Members Liquidators: Martin Judge Address: 114 Terenure Road North Terenure City Postcode: Dublin 6 IMAGEGLADE LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Imageglade Ltd Company No: 3618476 Com. Business: Graphic Design Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Martin C Armstrong IPno: 6212 Firm Name: Turpin Barker & Armstrong Address: Allen House 1 Westmead Road City Postcode: Sutton SM1 4LA INFANT CARE: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Infant Care Products Ltd Previous Name: Company No: 3129944 Com. Business: Retail Infant Products Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Gerard N Ratcliffe IPno: 8666 Firm Name: Ratcliffe & Co Address: 7 Chorley New Road City Postcode: Bolton BL1 4QR LASUN GRAPHICS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Lasun Graphics Printers Ltd Company No: 2848480 Com. Business: Printing & Reprographics Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: David N Kaye IPno: 2194 Firm Name: Crawfords Address: Stanton House 41 Blackfriars Road Salford City Postcode: Manchester M3 7DB LAURA ASHLEY: Retailer Sells 2.5 Million Shares ------------------------------ CITYWIRE, July 10, 2000 The Ashley family have sold a chunk of shares in the depressed retailer Laura Ashley. They offloaded 2.5 million shares on 3 July and now hold just over 75 million - around 12.5% of the company. The shares have made a slight recovery having traded at just 14p earlier in the year. The positive move in the price has come on the back of a number of initiatives to improve flagging trading. At its May AGM to the relief of its long suffering shareholders the company announced that trading since the preliminary results on 11 April 2000 continued to be in line with management's expectations. Earlier in the year at the result the company's chief executive, Mr K Ng, told shareholders: `During the last six months good progress has been made. Our continuing business is now profitable and, with a positive cash position of over ?14 million, the Group is on a much firmer financial footing than a year ago.' Today's announcement does not disclose the price the family sold at. The shares dropped 0.5p on the news to 19.25p. LLYN WOODCRAFTS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Llyn Woodcrafts Ltd Previous Name: Speed 2644 Company No: 2726139 Com. Business: Furniture Manufacturers/Restorers Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Robert M Rutherford IPno: 6852 Firm Name: Parkin S Booth & Co Address: 24 Trinity Square City Postcode: Llandudno LL30 2RH LOUVRE TECHNIK: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Louvre Technik Ltd Company No: 3482626 Com. Business: Manufacture Security Equipment Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: John H C Lee IPno: 2261 Firm Name: Horsfields Address: 8 Manchester Road City Postcode: Bury BL9 0ED LYNX: UK Group Endangered ------------------------------ CITYWIRE, July 10, 2000 Lynx shares down 17% on profit warning Software group Lynx saw its shares tumble 17% this morning after the group warned that the `financial performances of certain of our businesses has been less than satisfactory'. Shares crashed 28.5p to 137.5p after Lynx said that market expectations for the current year would not be achieved. Particularly badly hit are the automotive systems division, where the UK business has been `severely affected', and the asset finance business, which has experienced a `notable downturn in demand'. The company is also seeing `considerable uncertainties surrounding trading conditions' in the value added distribution and corporate solutions divisions. However, recent acquisition Bankhall is `trading ahead of expectations'. MORUPLAST LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Moruplast Ltd Company No: 754832 Com. Business: Injection Mould Tools Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: David J Watchorn IPno: 8686 Firm Name: Elwell Watchorn & Saxton Address: 109 Swan Street City Postcode: Sileby LE12 7NN NANS PANTRY: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Nans Pantry Wedding Services Ltd Company No: 2301543 Com. Business: Event Catering Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Barry D Lewis IPno: 2048 Firm Name: Harris Lipman Address: 2 Mountview Court 310 Friern Barnet Lane City Postcode: London N20 0YZ NORTH POLE: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: North Pole Ltd - The Previous Name: Shelfco (No 1385) Ltd Company No: 3406549 Com. Business: Bar & Restaurant Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Peter Gotham IPno: 4117 Firm Name: Begbies Traynor Address: The Old Exchange 234 Southchurch Road City Postcode: Southend-on-Sea SS1 2EG ORBITAL DISTRIBUTION: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Orbital Distribution Services Ltd Company No: 3393353 Com. Business: Transport Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Neil Henry IPno: 8622 Nola Barber 8000 Firm Name: Lines Henry Address: 27 The Downs City Postcode: Altrincham WA14 2QD OWEN-GOULD LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Owen-Gould (Services) Ltd Company No: 1493372 Com. Business: Plumbing/Heatinf Engineers Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Murzban K Mehta IPno: 6224 Firm Name: Citroen Wells Address: Devonshire House 1 Devonshire Street City Postcode: London W1N 2DR PLUMBRITE HEAT: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Plumbrite Heat & Plumb Supplies Ltd Company No: 3295129 Com. Business: Plumbing Services Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Gerard N Ratcliffe IPno: 8666 Firm Name: Ratcliffe & Co Address: 7 Chorley New Road City Postcode: Bolton BL1 4QR PROBE MARKET: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Probe Market Research Ltd Company No: 3459737 Com. Business: Market Research Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Ian C Brown IPno: 8621 Firm Name: Parkin S Booth & Co Address: 44 Old Hall Street City Postcode: Liverpool L3 9EB RMPR LTD: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: RMPR Ltd Company No: 3138170 Com. Business: Public Relations Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: T Papanicola IPno: 5496 Firm Name: Langley & Partners Address: Langley House Park Road City Postcode: London N2 8EX RAPIDE LIGHTWEIGHT: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Rapide Lightweight Roofing Ltd Company No: 3243127 Com. Business: Roofing Contractors Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Gerard N Ratcliffe IPno: 8666 Firm Name: Ratcliffe & Co Address: 7 Chorley New Road City Postcode: Bolton BL1 4QR REKLUF TRADING: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Rekluf Trading Ltd Company No: 449726 Com. Business: Sale of Vacuum Cleaner Spares Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Kevin Murphy IPno: 8349 Firm Name: RSQ Address: Parade House 135 The Parade City Postcode: Watford RELAY DISTRIBUTION: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Relay Distribution Serv (Holdings) Ltd Company No: 2567749 Com. Business: Haulage Contractors Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Frank A Simms IPno: 2773 John M Munn 7859 Firm Name: F A Simms & Partners Address: Insol House 39 Station Road City Postcode: Lutterworth LE17 4AP RIPLEYS PRINTERS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Ripleys The Printers Ltd Company No: 3723078 Com. Business: Printers Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Richard I Williamson IPno: 8013 Firm Name: Campbell Crossley & Davis Address: 348-350 Lytham Road City Postcode: Blackpool FY4 1DW TILEPORT: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Tileport Ltd Company No: 3745481 Com. Business: Tile Retailers Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors Liquidators: Michael R Fortune IPno: 8818 Peter O'Hara 5371 Firm Name: Fortune Peat Address: Acorn Business Park Tower Park City Postcode: Poole BH12 4NZ TOTAL SYSTEMS: Final Dividend Scrapped ------------------------------ CITYWIRE, July 10, 2000 Total setback Software group Total Systems has scrapped its final dividend after slumping ?579.589 into the red in the year to 31 March. The company made a profit of ?629,873 in the previous 12 months. The toad dividend per share has been slashed from 2p to 0.8p. Total supplies the insurance and pension funds sector. It said operating costs have been reduced but more had been invested in developing products. Chairman and chief executive Terry Bourne blamed delays in decision making by prospective clients for the loss. The shares gave up 2p to 86p. c2000 TOTAL SYSTEMS: Board Optimistic In Spite of Problems ------------------------------ CITYWIRE, July 10, 2000 Total Systems, provider of financial services software, has a board that is managing to remain optimistic in the face of adversity. In spite of reporting turnover for the year to 31 March down 40% at ?1.9 million, and losses of ?709,921 from profits of ?427,028 last time, the Total Systems board remains `confident that major growth opportunities exist'. The company earlier this year issued a profits warning for the first half, and told citywire.co.uk in March that it expected losses to continue in the second half. It may be that Total has been trying to sell a product before its market perceived the need for that product, or it could simply be that there simply is no market for its product. Total's original products, Total and Ultima provided efficiency- improving systems for insurance companies. Total's plain speaking chairman Terry Bourne has often gone on record blaming slow sales on his prospective customer's intransigence and their fear of having to make job cuts as a result of using the systems. In March the company launched totalenow, an e-commerce system for financial services organisations, which apparently takes less than twelve weeks to get up and running, and for which users do not pay an up front licence fee. The system is paid for as a percentage of transaction fees. In March, Bourne said the company would announce a major high street name had taken the product, but names have so far not been forthcoming. Total said it has signed five contracts for totalenow, and more are in the pipeline. However, due to the fact that there are no up front fees, and revenues will not start coming in until transactions are flowing through the system, the company does not expect the new product to impact the bottom line until at least the second half of this year. Turning a negative into a positive, Total said the `period of low staff utilisation has also enabled cross training and re-training of personnel to take place'. The company will not pay a final dividend `due to protracted contract negotiations and delays in decision making by prospective clients'. Total's shares fell 2p to 86p this morning. c2000 citywire.co.uk UL LEISURE: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: UL Leisure Interiors Ltd Previous Name: Ambleglade UK Ltd Company No: 2897756 Com. Business: General Construction/Civil Engine Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: G W Rhodes IPno: 2478 Firm Name: Begbies Traynor Address: 2-3 Pavilion Buildings City Postcode: Brighton BN1 1EE VERVE MODEL: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Verve Model Management Ltd Previous Name: Millenium Model Agency Company No: 4764856 Com. Business: Model Agency Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: David A Rolph IPno: 5930 Firm Name: Moore Stephens Booth White Address: 3-5 Rickmansworth Road City Postcode: Watford WD1 7HG WOOD FLOORS: Liquidation Proceedings ------------------------------ Company Name: Wood Floors Direct Ltd Company No: 3536018 Com. Business: Wood Floor Retail Appointed on: 14/06/00 Type: Creditors Appointed by: Creditors and Members Liquidators: Stephen M Rout IPno: 6062 Firm Name: Stephen M Rout & Co Address: 12 Signet Court Swanns Road City Postcode: Cambridge CB5 8LA S U B S C R I P T I O N I N F O R M A T I O N Troubled Company Reporter -- Europe is a daily newsletter co- published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Trenton, NJ USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, DC USA. Lexy Mueller and Joan Florido, Editors. Copyright 2000. All rights reserved. ISSN 1529-2754. This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior written permission of the publishers. Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but is not guaranteed. The TCR Europe subscription rate is $575 per half-year, delivered via e-mail. Additional e-mail subscriptions for members of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription or balance thereof are $25 each. For subscription information, contact Christopher Beard at 301/951-6400. * * * End of Transmission * * *