Quote:
Originally Posted by bugeater
I think Channel 9 is one of the better examples. It didn't technically end up insolvent, but only because of a negotiated agreement just before it was about to.
But in reality, what do you suggest as an alternative? People make mistakes, companies get into trouble and with restructuring they can still be viable ongoing businesses. Just because some investors (debt or equity) lost some money is neither here nor there. They are transactions between consenting adults and everyone should know the rules or not get involved. Now if fraud is involved, that's a different matter, but that isn't usually the case.
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I think the real bones of it here is it is very plain that there was no intent by Anchorage to restructure DSE and resurrect the business.
The actions taken over recent times quite plainly show an intent to take advantage of the situation of DSE when Woolies sold it to tweak the books within a hair of cooking them but not quite, in order to then use the businesses own assets to buy it with, and make the short term prospects look far better than they actually were in order to make it into a honeypot for investors and unload it at a huge profit. Unlawful? Probably not, unconscionable? Obviously not for Anchorage.
Somewhat harder to pass judgement on the current management except as indicated by the Forager write up to accuse them of not being very smart, presumably they intended to try to make a go of the business, but had they decided to wind it up just after Christmas or were they hoping for a bumper result to save the business? The latter would be able to be seen as gambling with customers money, the other a pretty cynical cash grab with the gift cards.