Insights | Kobre & Kim — Disputes and Investigations

Korean banks are holding an increasing amount of non-performing loans, putting their financial health at risk.
For many with large portfolios exposed to cross-border unsecured debt and loans to high-yield borrowers, sale and write downs may not be optimal.
A cross-border strategy to monetize their claims could offer a superior alternative.

Distressed debt investors who are beneficial owners or contingent creditors of bonds face uncertainty when bond issuers stop paying.
Courts in key jurisdictions are beginning to answer the question of whether creditors can wind-up issuers but are offering diverging decisions.
We explain how a recent ruling in the BVI opens the offshore jurisdiction to creditors considering a cross-border enforcement campaign.

Many Chinese debt issuers are still undergoing a wave of defaults, putting offshore general unsecured creditors at risk.
One way to secure substantial recovery is to enforce keepwell agreements, promises by a PRC onshore parent company to maintain a debt issuer’s liquidity and solvency.
This can expand the range of enforcement targets, increasing creditors’ options and chances of success.

Tightening global credit conditions will put more corporate high-yield debt issuers and private borrowers from emerging markets at risk of default.
This can spiral into complex cross-border disputes with creditors, threatening the company’s survival.
Fortunately, there are creative and aggressive strategies available for debtors to limit their exposure and protect their bottom lines.

Prices of Russian and other sovereign debt are falling as their economies buckle, presenting both opportunities and challenges for investors.
Enforcing the debt against sovereign entities is already difficult, more so when sanctions are involved.
As our Claim Monetization & Dilution team explains, non-traditional strategies may go further in putting maximum pressure on sovereigns and maximizing returns.

Mainland China is undergoing a wave of credit defaults, and creditors should use every tool available to maximize recovery.
Keepwell agreements, a promise by a PRC onshore parent company to maintain an offshore debt issuer’s solvency, is one option for overseas enforcement.
Creditors can use them to launch a multijurisdictional recovery campaign to drive up pressure on the debtor and reach a near-term settlement.

Offshore bondholders of distressed Chinese real estate companies often lack leverage in restructuring negotiations, with those companies’ assets located mostly in China.
China Evergrande Group is just one of the many Chinese real estate companies teetering on default, with wide-ranging consequences.
However, by taking deploying creative strategies and taking positions against competing stakeholders, activist bondholders can carve out a direct path to monetization.