The temporary Covid-19 protections offered by the UK government to businesses to prevent them from being subject to winding up petitions or wrongful trading actions are currently due to expire at the end of September (although an extension is very possible).

At some point, those protections will lapse and creditor sentiment could quickly turn from forbearance to enforcement. There may well be situations where secured creditors take the view that rather than continuing to support the current equity holders, a “loan to own” strategy or a clean enforcement is the preferred exit route.

Given the popularity of Jersey and Guernsey holding structures for investment into the UK, secured creditors with exposure to such structures will need legal advice in those jurisdictions where enforcement strategies are being considered. Enforcement of share security over Jersey or Guernsey companies in those structures will generally be one of the enforcement options.

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