The High Court has confirmed the appointment of an examiner to the company which publishes the Buy and Sell advertising paper after a scheme aimed at its survival was drawn up.
Last month, the court heard that the company was insolvent and unable to restructure a debt of €18.3m, mainly owed to National Irish Bank (NIB).
Ms Justice Mary Laffoy appointed Tom Kavanagh as interim examiner to three companies, B and S Ltd, Buy and Sell Northern Ireland Ltd and Naldin Ltd, Morehampton Road, Dublin, following an application from the company directors. The paper provides a classified advertising service to the public and to trade advertisers.
The judge confirmed Mr Kavanagh as examiner after she was told a scheme of survival was drawn up so that the business could continue as a going concern.
The company employs 64 people and, while its circulation has dropped to 31,500, there has been a substantial increase in the number of visitors to its website to 572,000 from 237,000 last year.
Rossa Fanning BL, for the company, told the court there had been 15 'expressions of interest' from third parties in the company since the interim examiner was appointed. The court also heard last month that there had been a proposal of additional investment in the group, by one of its companies, Naldin Ltd, under a survival scheme.
The principal trading company, Buy and Sell, has been profitable for several years and remains profitable but this was not sufficient to serve the debt to NIB which was its fundamental problem, Mr Fanning said.
Under the scheme, it was proposed that a small number of pre-examinership debts to a number of key technological and information service providers should be paid to ensure the day-to-day survival of the company, counsel said.
The court heard that the main creditors, including NIB, the Revenue and two printing companies, were neutral on the scheme of survival - although counsel for NIB, James Doherty, said the bank was concerned about the portrayal of the bank in the examinership petition. Counsel said he wanted to make it clear the bank had worked very hard in trying to help the company find a solution to its problems.
