Investment Dar appoints chief restructuring officer

A company turnaround expert who has led high profile restructuring processes such as Eurotunnel, Railtrack and Cable & Wireless, has been appointed by Kuwait's Investment Dar.

The company said on Sunday that it has appointed Mike Grant as a chief restructuring officer to help the Islamic investment firm to reschedule its debt and reach a deal with its lenders.

Grant, a partner at London-based Aaronite Partners, will work with the company's management to help "negotiate and implement a consensual restructuring plan", Investment Dar, which owns half of British luxury carmaker Aston Martin, said in a statement.

Appointing a chief restructuring officer is part of a stand-still agreement Dar signed recently with its creditors, it added in the statement.

Last month, Investment Dar, which is in the midst of restructuring debt, said it has signed an agreement with creditors and investors to freeze claims temporarily.

Dar defaulted on a $100 million Islamic debt issue in May and has said it may sell some assets to meet its obligations.

Last month, Kuwait's central bank appointed a temporary supervisor to monitor debt restructuring and compilation of financial results at Dar.

Trading in Dar's shares have been suspended since April 1, after the firm failed to submit its 2008 financial records on time. Dar had said that it was seeking to borrow up to $1 billion to refinance debt.
 
Adnan Al Musallam, chairman and chief executive officer,  said: "We are pleased to welcome Mr Grant...His wealth of expertise and experience will be invaluable to our restructuring process and the implementation of a consensual restructuring plan in the best interests of all of our stakeholders."

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