Sergei Bakeshin commented for NP on VLK LLC’s attempt to initiate bankruptcy proceedings against its parent company

Vyborgskaya Lesopromyshlennaya Korporatsiya (Vyborg Timber Corporation) LLC, which is in bankruptcy proceedings, has filed a lawsuit to declare bankrupt its former owner – Vyborg Limited, a company registered in the USA. According to the Arbitration Case File, the creditor is demanding RUB 780 m.

Until 2022, Vyborg Limited was registered on the territory of the island of Jersey, which is located in the English Channel. In 2022, the company was removed from Jersey’s register of legal entities due to liquidation. However, the Jersey Royal Court ruled last July that if a number of requirements are met (filing of all necessary tax returns, repayment of tax debts and so on), the liquidation of Vyborg Limited will be cancelled.

As Sergei Bakeshin, Counsel, Head of Dispute Resolution and Insolvency Practice at Maxima Legal, explained to Novy Prospect, the company only needs to file an application to continue its operations off the island. As a result, in September 2023, Vyborg Limited was entered into the register of companies in the US state of Utah under the name Vyborg Limited, Inc, the expert noted.

Back in 2019, VLC recovered RUB 780.9 m from Vyborg Limited under a 2013 loan agreement. This judgement came into force in 2020.

‘It has apparently not been enforced, and VLK hopes to satisfy its claims during the bankruptcy proceedings of Vyborg Limited,’ suggested Sergei Bakeshin.

‘Maybe this is a real attempt to satisfy the claims. It may be a reason to delay the consideration of the VLK bankruptcy case, because until all the measures to form the bankruptcy estate are completed, there are still grounds to extend the term of bankruptcy proceedings,’ Maxima Legal’s counsel assessed the attempt to initiate bankruptcy proceedings against the parent company.

To read the full article (in Russian) please visit Novy Prospect website »