Deloitte and Touche appointed receiver of Baha Mar

As of Friday, October 30, 2015

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Supreme Court granted a request from the China Export-Import Bank to appoint Deloitte and Touche as receiver of the stalled $3.5bn Baha Mar resort on Friday.

Although the terms of the arrangement are not clear, the move sidelines the developer, Sarkis Izmirlian, more than ever.

The Tribune understands that Deloitte Managing Partner Raymond Winder and a Deloitte and Touche partner from Hong Kong have been named as receivers.

While receivership was anticipated by many, some stakeholders Friday were caught by surprise by how quickly it took place given that the respective parties had until November 25th to resolve their dispute ahead of a Supreme Court hearing on whether to put the company into liquidation.

The move is the latest consequence of the dispute that has brought the project to a standstill, culminating in more than 2,000 employees being made redundant last week.

On Friday, State Minister for Legal Affairs Damian Gomez said he anticipated receivership, saying "the Chinese are putting themselves forward to put up the money to move the project forward”.

Free National Movement (FNM) Deputy Leader Peter Turnquest added that the move is "one of the last remaining options other than full liquidation. It's the last viable option”.

Regarding what this means for developer Sarkiz Izmirlian, who has invested $850m in the project, Mr Turnquest said: "It certainly sidelines him. It removes him from the decision table. He will have to hope for a successful completion and try to assert his minority rights. The receiver can now act in the best interest of the project irrespective of financiers, the original developer, or the government."

In a statement released Friday, the Supreme Court's Joint Provisional Liquidators, Alastair Beveridge and Edmund Rahming, said they would work closely with the receivers to get Baha Mar open.

"Our role now is to work closely with Deloitte as the bank's appointed receivers with a view to exploring and deciding on the most appropriate strategic option in order to see the resort completed and open for business," the statement said.

realfreethinker 9 years, 1 month ago

The chinese got what they always wanted. They knew if they had tried to get the hotel done on their own government would have refused. They loan Izzy the money and just before the place was completed they pulled the rug from under him,now the Chinese state own one of the largest piece of prime land in this side of the planet. It was all facilitated by this inept government. Brush on yall mandarin cause yall ger need it.

Chucky 9 years, 1 month ago

you must be joking, one of the largest pieces of prime land this side of the planet? You must be on PLP drugs This country is a sh*# hole and getting worse by the day, but even in its prime our land was nothing but barely above sea level and baron, certainly not prime on the scale of the region, much less the hemisphere.

Honestman 9 years, 1 month ago

The big unanswered question is whether or not this was the Chinese government's plan all along? Or perhaps China joined the project not caring whether it succeeded or not? If it succeeded fine - if not, China would acquire the property by default. Regardless, the reality is that the Chinese State (in whatever form) now owns the Hilton, The Pointe and Cable Beach. It effectively has a stranglehold on the Bahamian economy. Cynics will say that China has bought the Bahamian vote at the United Nations for a loss of a few billion dollars - pocket money to China. Or perhaps the cynics are wrong? Perhaps the Chinese bank will sell out to other hotel groups and cede away ownership and control of the project? Time will tell. For the time being, we should be deeply suspicious of China's motives and deeply critical of the government's handling of this entire fiasco.

ThisIsOurs 9 years, 1 month ago

They also own BAMSI...our food security plan

TalRussell 9 years, 1 month ago

Comrades this is an excellent move and what I had predicted months back was going to happen. But unfortunately the cost will have increased by another billion dollars as a result of the time wasting parties jet hoping all over world while spending millions dollars to stop it.
This could have been achieved months earlier. and without the BS negative press releases that have been flying around that now are costing another cool billion to get the resort construction completed and open for business. I would strongly suggest they forever remove all the Baha Mar signage.
Too much bad press under the local and international financial and tourism bridges. To also restart a fresh with the rehiring of a whole bunch new employees not brainwashed as citizens of a failed Cable Beach nation.

Deloitte and Touche appointed receiver of Baha Mar

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