Posted inBanking & Finance

Kuwait’s Investment Dar says a third of creditors to accept deal

Indebted Kuwaiti shareholder of British luxury carmaker Aston Martin eyes restructuring deal

(Getty Images)
(Getty Images)

The indebted Kuwaiti shareholder of British luxury carmaker Aston Martin has persuaded just under a third of its creditors to accept a debt restructuring deal that offers them shares in a portfolio of its assets, its financial advisor said on Wednesday.

The Investment Dar is among other Kuwaiti banks and investment firms to overextend in the years up to 2008 and then struggle to refinance debt as the global economic crisis hit the Gulf state.

The sharia-compliant investor defaulted on a $100 million Islamic bond payment in 2009, leading it to restructure around $3.7 billion in debt two years later.

Investment bank Houlian Lokey said 29 percent of Investment Dar’s creditors took up the offer. Under the deal, creditors settled claims at a 62.6 percent discount in exchange for cash, debt and equity held by a vehicle based in Jersey, the bank said in an email.

In May, Investment Dar said creditors which did not want to take part in the offer could retain their claims under an original restructuring plan, which offered creditors a 10 percent stake.

Follow us on

For all the latest business news from the UAE and Gulf countries, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn, like us on Facebook and subscribe to our YouTube page, which is updated daily.