Bridgecorp falls down

New Zealand property debenture investment company Bridgecorp has collapsed owing investors up to $500 million.

Some 18,000 debenture holders are affected, with around $470 million owed to debenture stock investors and $30 million to unsecured lenders.

When it emerged that Bridgecorp had breached its trust deed by defaulting on principal repayments to investors, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) partners John Waller and Colin McCloy were appointed receivers.

The assets of Bridgecorp have been secured as PwC determines the exact financial position of the company and its investors, but an explanatory note issued by the receivers said “given the size of Bridgecorp and the number and complexity of loans, this will take some time”.

Once the extent of the collapse has been gauged, the receivers will release a report to inform debenture holders of their findings and to advise what the potential returns will be.

Bridgecorp is owned by the Australian company Bridgecorp Holdings, the same entity that owns Australian subsidiary non-bank lender Bridgecorp Finance.

Though the receivership is restricted to the New Zealand company, Bridgecorp Finance itself struck trouble in August last year when the Australian Securities and Investments Commission stopped it from raising further debenture funds or accepting rollovers from existing funds.

PwC has established a website and a dedicated telephone line to handle investor queries into the collapse and how it impacts them.