 |
BTT director Philip Bart
Photo: SiN Images
|
BTT was wound up by a creditors voluntary liquidation (CVL) initiated by its shareholder, Australian Textile Group (ATG) on July 11, 2014. HLB Man Judd's Andrew Needham and Barry Taylor were appointed joint liquidators.
A day earlier, a newly incorporated and related entity, Australian Textile Mills Pty Ltd (ATM), purchased BTT's assets and $11.247 million in net liabilities for $1. The assetless BTT shell was left owing almost $4 million in employee entitlements.
ASIC's head of insolvency practitioner regulation, Adrian Brown told SiN that the government was onto the matter immediately.
"ASIC and the DOE have worked together on the Bruck Textiles matter from the first day of the liquidators' appointment," he told SiN.
"ASIC liaises closely with the DOE concerning its program and our AAF. This way, we can collaborate to determine how best to enforce the law (ASIC's role) and recover FEG (Fair Entitlements Guarantee) advances for the Commonwealth.
Needham and Taylor entered into a funding agreement with ASIC in December 2014 after advising in their August 5, 2014 report to creditors that the BTT directors "may be guilty of an offence under section 596AB of the Corporations Act".
It should be noted that no such finding has been made against BTT's directors. Director and Bruck Group owner Philip James Bart told SiN late last month he had provided all information necessary to demonstrate that the statute had not been breached. He declined to respond to questions submitted in advance of publication, quoting legal advice.
