The Fortenova Group has announced that the extraordinary administration process in Agrokor has been completed, and Agrokor d.d. has been deleted from the Court Register.
– According to the published final decision of the Commercial Court in Zagreb, the extraordinary administration process in Agrokor has been completed, and Agrokor d.d. has been deleted from the Court Register – it was announced by Fortenova.
It is stated that the Commercial Court in Zagreb, by a decision dated July 19, 2022, determined that by validly merging 46 unsustainable companies with the debtor Agrokor d.d. as the acquirer, the creditors’ settlement of Agrokor is considered executed, and the extraordinary administration process over the debtor Agrokor d.d. is concluded.
Thus, it is assessed in the announcement, ‘one of the largest global restructuring processes through bankruptcy has been successfully completed, which is internationally recognized, and the process has gained legal legitimacy in the European Union, the United Kingdom, the USA, and Switzerland.’
– During the extraordinary administration process, the over-indebted Agrokor continued operations despite being in bankruptcy, and all operations and full employment were preserved in the process. At that time, the system employed more than 50,000 people in Southeast Europe, and its collapse, due to the impact on thousands of related companies, would have caused serious negative consequences in the economies of Croatia and all countries in the region – it is emphasized in the announcement.
The extraordinary administration process in Agrokor began on April 10, 2017, and encompassed a total of 77 Agrokor companies. The total debt of the company at that time amounted to 56 billion kuna, the debt-to-operating profit ratio was about 30 times, and there were only six kuna in the company’s accounts, it is recalled in the announcement.
It is added that in just one year, the extraordinary commissioner Fabris Peruško and his team normalized operations and completed negotiations on the creditors’ settlement, which was voted on with more than 80 percent of the creditors’ votes in July 2018, and its finality was confirmed in October 2018.
As the most important result of the extraordinary administration process from Fortenova, in addition to the achieved settlement and preserved business operations, they highlight the fact that ‘even during the process, the debts of 2,400 micro and small suppliers were fully paid, while other creditors were settled at an average of 60 percent.’
It is stated that all supplier payments and the total cost of stabilizing the collapsed business were covered from the operations and assets of Agrokor, without spending taxpayers’ money from the Republic of Croatia.
The extraordinary administration process, Fortenova reminds, also received international legal protection, and the international financial profession awarded it the TMA award as one of the best restructuring processes in the world in 2018.
With the cessation of Agrokor’s existence, Fabris Peruško’s powers and duties as the extraordinary commissioner under Article 12 of the Act on the Extraordinary Administration Procedure in Companies of Systemic Importance for the Republic of Croatia cease, as do his rights and obligations as the debtor’s body and representation authority.
– We can rightfully be proud of concluding one of the most important economic processes ever conducted in Croatia, with an impact on the entire region. The process was challenging and complex, the scope of work enormous, and the deadlines short. In very difficult negotiations on the settlement, we had to reconcile often diametrically opposed interests of creditors. In attempts to reach an agreement that would be acceptable to all, there were tensions, sacrifices, and compromises. In the end, the high percentage with which the creditors supported the settlement at the hearing, and then everything we did later in the transformation of the company towards the Fortenova Group, showed that we had the knowledge and determination necessary to manage this complex process – emphasized in the announcement a member of the Board of Directors and CEO of the Fortenova Group, Fabris Peruško.
He notes that the Government, financial creditors, suppliers, employees, he as the commissioner, and the entire team made extraordinary efforts to ensure that the extraordinary administration process secured sustainable operations for a company that was practically bankrupt.
– This was a fundamental prerequisite for everything we accomplished in the three and a half years since the establishment of the Fortenova Group, which we brought to revenues of five billion euros, with debt below four times the debt-to-operating profit ratio, and the status of one of the most desirable employers and major investors in the entire region – stated Peruško.
He thanked everyone who made a personal constructive contribution to the extraordinary administration process, the Government that proposed him for the responsible job of extraordinary commissioner, and the Commercial Court in Zagreb that appointed him.
– I am particularly proud that, together with a team in which numerous colleagues participated in the extraordinary administration process, I now lead a company that, thanks to positive changes, successfully overcomes all the challenges we face – stated Peruško on the occasion of the closure of the extraordinary administration process and the conclusion of his role as extraordinary commissioner.
