The Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) Normalisation Committee says its repayment proposal was fair and equitable, despite all claims not being settled.
In a statement on Saturday, it thanked creditors and all who participated in the exercise that led to the approval of the repayment proposal that will finally resolve the association’s years’ old debt problem.
TTFA’s creditors met on Thursday under the chairmanship of the Supervisor of Insolvency and voted unanimously in favour of a TTFA NC’s debt repayment proposal, made through the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, that will see them receive anywhere from 63 cents in the dollar to 100 per cent of the monies owed to them, based on current validated claims.
The Normalisation Committee extended thanks to the EY team and the Trustee Maria Daniel for their tireless and unrelenting efforts, and everyone else who participated in the process of resolving the debt problem.
“We, the members of the committee, are grateful for where we are today, and while we would like to have been in a position to fully satisfy the claims of all legitimate creditors, we think the Trustee did an excellent job in arriving at a solution that was fair and equitable, with the resources available to us,” said Normalisation Committee chairman Robert Hadad.
The Normalisation Committee said the repayment process took longer than it had planned because of several contributing factors, including the legal battles and the pandemic.
There were 299 creditors listed in the Trustee’s repayment proposal with a total unsecured debt of TT$84.5 million (US$12.5 million). Ninety-three of these submitted had claims amounting to TT$59.3 million (US$8.7 million), of which 88 were validated with a value of TT$34.4 million (US$5.1 million) before Thursday’s meeting. Fifty-one of them (or their proxies) registered and voted at the meeting.
Notably absent was the TTFA’s largest listed creditor, Austin Jack Warner, who topped the list with a debt of TT$22.7 million (US$3.3 million). Daniel advised the meeting that Warner did not submit a claim for validation.
Hadad also thanked FIFA for the role it played in helping us get to this point and we now look forward to working with the Government, SPoRTT Company and other stakeholders to getting football on course for brighter days. The journey has now begun.”
The debt repayment proposal will be funded by an interest-free US$3.5 million instrument that the TTFA will have 10 years to repay.
Creditors owed up to TT$200,000 (US$29,497) will be paid in full and the balances above that will be pro-rated. They will also have the option to be paid in US or TT dollars. - (CMC)