RBG Liquidation
We were instructed by a trade finance bank following the collapse of RBG (formerly Allied Metals) amid allegations of fraud and bogus trading.
Our London office received the instructions and quickly determined that the bank was owed US$50 million and that RBG themselves were said to be indebted to the tune of US$1 billion.
The first priority was to exercise the bank’s security rights over cargoes. This involved mobilising our overseas offices in Athens, Madrid and Singapore.
In many jurisdictions we found that we were ahead of the liquidator (appointed by the English Court) and his solicitors (a large multi-practice firm) as well as other creditor banks. This was particularly true in Singapore, where we not only obtained an injunction before anyone else, but also managed to speak to a warehouse manager who revealed how the fraud had been perpetrated.
Our clients and other banks caught up in the problem were impressed with our dynamic and co-ordinated response in many jurisdictions and ability to cut to the chase before the competing creditors.