/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCRAP_Public/010312.MBX           T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                      A S I A   P A C I F I C

              Monday, March 12, 2001, Vol. 4, No. 49

                            Headlines

A U S T R A L I A

HOTLINKS: Sold To TV's Blast Group


C H I N A   &   H O N G  K O N G

MEI KING: Winding Up Petition
FUJIAN GROUP: Five of Its Assets Under Receivership
GUANGDONG ENTERPRISES: Creditors to Sell GDE Redress


I N D O N E S I A

PUTRA SURYA: Gets Three-Year Extension on Debts
MANULIFE INDONESIA: IBRA Tasked To Study Manulife Case
JAKARTA SETIABUDI: Suffers Rp200 Net Loss


J A P A N

MYCAL CORPORATION: Plans To Padlock Two Stores


K O R E A

HYUNDAI ELECTRONICS: Misses Loan Payment


M A L A Y S I A

RASHID HUSSAIN: Set To Reschedule RM1b Debt
OMEGA HOLDINGS: Announces Scheme of Arrangement
SRI HARTAMAS: To Evaluate Tender Proposals


P H I L I P P I N E S

PHILIPPINE NATIONAL: Inks Joint Sale Of PNB Shares with Tan
URBAN BANK: Four Banks Bid to Buy Into Defunct Bank


S I N G A P O R E

GOLDTRON LIMITED: Defers to Sanction on Capital Reduction


T H A I L A N D

PREMIER FINANCE: FRA To Distribute Payout Among Creditors
THONBURI AUTOMOTIVE: Court Nods to Firm's Rehab Plan
THAI TELEPHONE: Sees Door Out Of Bankruptcy Process


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A U S T R A L I A
=================

HOTLINKS: Sold To TV's Blast Group
----------------------------------
Interactive TV company Blast Group bought insolvent Hotlinks
after it underwent liquidation Thursday for $350,000, or 70
percent of the capital of this Melbourne Internet service
provider.

About 57 percent of the amount will go to creditor National
Australia Bank, whose loan is secured by the personal assets of
Sports Australia Media director Andrew Thomson. About 200
creditors to whom Hotlinks owes over $0.5 million may not receive
any return even if they charged the directors for insolvent
trading.

Since it took over the Hotlinks business in May 2000, Sports
Australia Media could have been insolvent even if it raised $5
million in public capital, the Sydney Morning Herald said.  
Sports Australia had taken over the Hotlinks business in May of
last year.  There reportedly is no record of the amount in the
company's financial records.

Hotlinks was placed in voluntary administration in February and
serves more than 3,000 customers. It also hosts Web sites for
about 250 clients. The company had only $2,231 in cash and owed
employee entitlements totaling $46,813 when Sims Lockwood was
appointed its liquidator.

Hotlinks is also facing cases filed against the company and
Thomson in the Supreme Court of Victoria by Yong Pun and Net
Profit Marketing.


================================
C H I N A   &   H O N G  K O N G
================================


MEI KING: Winding Up Petition
-----------------------------
A petition to wind up Mei King Hot-Pot Seafood Restaurant Limited
was filed in the High Court of Hong Kong on February 8, 2001 by
Yuen Pui Lu of 4th Floor, 7 Kwan Yick Street, West Point, Hong
Kong. Hearing of the petition before the Court is scheduled on
April 25, 2001 at 9:30 a.m.


FUJIAN GROUP: Five of Its Assets Under Receivership
---------------------------------------------------
Property investment and development firm Fujian Group yesterday
said that five of its Hong Kong properties worth a total of about
$98.4M had been put under receivership.  The properties represent
about 22 percent of Fujian Group's total fixed assets as of
September 2000, it said in a statement.

Fujian said the receivership covers all the leases and income of
the properties concerned, and if the creditors were to force the
sale of such properties, the company could incur a further loss
from the sales, albeit some of their debts to the creditors would
be settled.


GUANGDONG ENTERPRISES: Creditors to Sell GDE Redress
----------------------------------------------------
Former creditors will place on the block for sale 40 properties
acquired from Guangdong Enterprises (Holdings) (GDE). According
to a report in the South China Morning Herald, the disposal would
involve private treaty sales, public and private tenders and
auctions.  

Already turned over to former GDE creditors-owned Hong Kong
Property (HKP), the properties include the 25-storey Guangdong
Building, the Guangdong Star Building, and other residential
buildings and development sites. Estimated revenue from the
combined sale of five key properties is pegged at over HK$ 800
million.

"We are confident that the individual properties will appeal to a
broad range of investors, developers and end users," said Tony
Lo, national senior director of Jones Lang LaSalle, the appointed
adviser and sole marketing agent.

In December, GDE completed its two-year US$5.95 billion debt-
restructuring plan.


=================
I N D O N E S I A
=================


PUTRA SURYA: Gets Three-Year Extension on Debts
-----------------------------------------------
Putra Surya Perkasa has received a three-year extension on its
debt repayments when creditors approved the company's plea for a
restructuring at a meeting before the Jakarta Commercial Court.

Presided by judge Christi Purnamiwulan, the creditors' meeting
and bankruptcy hearing was attended by 19 creditors, 10 of which
were represented by the Indonesia Bank Restructuring Agency. The
company has 26 creditors.

The restructured debt totaled 1.9 trillion rupiah, in addition to
US$27.5 million.

Purnamiwulan explained that the creditors approved the company's
proposal considering that its total debt is nearly equivalent in
value to its assets, which is posted at 2.4 trillion rupiah. They
also believed, she added, that the company's debt problems were
largely affected by the dollar-rupiah exchange fluctuations, and
not on negligence or an inability to repay its debts.


MANULIFE INDONESIA: IBRA Tasked To Study Manulife Case
-----------------------------------------------------
The head of the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA),
Edwin Gerungan, will study the Manulife case for possible
implications on the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) next loan
disbursement to Indonesia, AFX - Asia reported, citing an IBRA
source.

As per request made by Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for the
Economy, Rizal Ramli, before he left on an overseas engagement,
IBRA will have "to explore the case and make recommendations to
help [Ramli] resolve the case."

The case referred to resulted from the bankruptcy court's
allegedly illegal auction of shares owned by now-defunct PT
Dharmala Sakti Sejahtera in PT Asuransi Jiwa Manulife Indonesia.
Manulife Financial Corp took home the shares of Dharmala Sakti in
the said auction, which was then contested by other parties,
claiming that the British Virgin Island company Roman Gold Assets
Ltd had already bought the same shares from another party.

For the said transaction, Indonesian police detained Manulife
Indonesia vice president Adi Purnomo Wijaya. But, President
Abdurrahman Wahid intervened, acting on the concerns of Canadian
Prime Minister Jean Chretiin about the way the government was
handling the case. Wijaya was released 20 days later.


JAKARTA SETIABUDI: Suffers Rp200 Net Loss
-----------------------------------------
Property developer and operator company PT Jakarta Setiabudi
Internasional posted a net loss of Rp200.51 billion in the full
year to December 31, 2000, from Rp94.61 billion the previous
year, IndoExchange reported.

Attributed to this were the company's non-operating expenses that
totaled Rp315.49 billion last year, the lion's share of which was
taken from foreign exchange losses that soared to a high of
Rp253.06bn, with Rp80.22bn in net interest charges. Jakarta
Setiabudi recorded Rp13.78bn non-operating income early in the
year supported by a currency gain of Rp99.48 billion, which is
enough to cover the net interest charges of Rp82.19 billion.

In the fiscal year to December 31, the company recorded a
Rp132.11 billion net operating profit, an increase of 10.13
percent from the previous year's net operating income amounting
to Rp119.96 billion. Then again, its revenue dropped to $42.62
million, or a slump by 15.56 percent.

Fingers are now being pointed to the downward trend of the rupiah
against the US dollar, which caused the increases in the
company's operating income, total revenue, and expenses.

Moreover, the company's liability is growing at an average of
28.20 percent from 1996 until 2000. By the end of December 2000,
it already accumulated to Rp1,207.07 billion, or an increase by
25.47 percent as compared to the one recorded earlier in the
year.


=========
J A P A N
=========


MYCAL CORPORATION: Plans To Padlock Two Stores
----------------------------------------------
Two Mycal Corp. stores are facing possible closure, sources told
Japan Times Online, if the financially troubled supermarket chain
concludes that sales figures and negotiations with the local
communities warrant such action. The two outlets are Ofuna Saty
and Shinsaibashi Vivre, in Yokohama and Osaka, respectively.

This move, the report also said, is pursuant to the retail
company's three-year restructuring plan. Apart from the two
stores, other outlets considered for closure are those that Mycal
has direct hands in operations, rather than the joint ventures
the company has with local businesses and public entities.

In January, Mycal Corp. announced plans to close 50 of the
unprofitable 230 Saty discount stores and Vivre ready-to-wear
stores by February 2004.


=========
K O R E A
=========


HYUNDAI ELECTRONICS: Misses Loan Payment
----------------------------------------
Hyundai Electronics Industries, which must repay three-quarters
of its debt this year, said its US affiliate missed a US$57M loan
payment, prompting concern the chipmaker will face more calls on
its finances.  Hyundai Semiconductor America failed to make the
payment last week on a project finance loan.

Hyundai Electronics, the No. 2 memory-chip maker, has 5.6
trillion won of interest-bearing debt due this year.


===============
M A L A Y S I A
===============


RASHID HUSSAIN: Set To Reschedule RM1b Debt
-------------------------------------------
As part of his plan to revive his business group, which is
intended to split into banking and stockbroking, tycoon Rashid
Hussain will reschedule by the end of March a significant portion
of the group's debt. Rashid Hussain Bhd (RHB) has already
received consent from bank-creditors, although still tentative,
to convert into long-term its short-term debt of RM1 billion.

The government, which keeps interests in the group, is still not
happy with the revamp, including over the acquisitions rates of
three brokerages. Moreover, it has expressed its discontent on
the RM500 million as goodwill payment of RHB Bank for the
acquisition of RHB Sakura Merchants Bankers.

With these feelers from the government, RHB Capital's bid last
month to redeem preference shares in RHB Capital amounting to RM1
billion from Danamodal Nasional, a recapitalization agency,
received a denial from the finance ministry.

RHB Capital still holds the right, but it may have difficulty
looking for the opportunity to do so, and more so, because the
government may push for a merger between RHB Bank and either
Maybank or Bumiputra-Commerce Bank.

A report in Business Times quoted former RHB Bank chairman Geh Ek
Chong as saying: "RHB Bank never required any recapitalisation
from Danamodal and the sole purpose of the RM1 billion preference
shares was for the rescue of Sime Bank which RHB Bank carried out
at the request of Bank Negara."

Citing a source from the government, the report said that the
government saw the issue in another light, stressing that "Rashid
took over a clean bank." It referred to the transfer of more than
RM3 billion of non-performing loans to bad loans recovery agency
Danaharta.

The group has other short-term debt totaling RM1.2 billion,
incurred when the group acquired Maybank the Kwong Yik Bank in
1996. Also, in February 1997, RHB was granted short-term loans
from twelve banks, including the Labuan outfit of DBS Bank.


OMEGA HOLDINGS: Announces Scheme of Arrangement
-----------------------------------------------
Omega Holdings Berhad announced on Wednesday its Proposed
Member's Scheme of Arrangement, comprising the Proposed Capital
Reduction, Proposed Newco Incorporation and Proposed Share
Exchange, Proposed Rights Issue, Proposed Restricted Issue,
Proposed Acquisition and Proposed Debt Restructuring.

In light of the announcement, the Company had entered into a
conditional sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with Cheung Chi
Yuen, Chai Boon Seong, Yong Yew Kong, Yong Yuen Chan, Wong Wan
Ying, Cheang Fook Choy, Tow Lye Good and Chow Kam Wing for the
proposed acquisition by Newco of the entire issued and paid-up
share capital of Broadland Garment Industries Sdn Bhd (BGI),
comprising 2 million ordinary shares for a purchase consideration
of RM70 million to be satisfied by the issuance of 70 million new
ordinary shares in Newco credited as fully paid-up at an issue
price of RM1.00 per share.

The SPA is due to expire on March 7, 2001. Omega and the Vendors
had made negotiations on the extension of the SPA. An
announcement will be made in due course after both parties have
reached an agreement.


SRI HARTAMAS: To Evaluate Tender Proposals
------------------------------------------
Sri Hartamas Berhad has announced that it is in the process of
evaluating the 12 bids or proposals it received for the
restructuring and/or acquisition of assets of the company and its
subsidiaries. This resulted from the open tender exercise carried
out by the Special Administrators.

Of the total 12 tender proposals, three proposed to restructure
the Sri Hartamas group and nine bids came in for certain assets
of the subsidiaries.

The Special Administrators had proceeded to seek clarification on
the proposals submitted in order to improve on the payout to the
creditors and/or to improve the quality of the assets to be
injected. This process is still in progress.


=====================
P H I L I P P I N E S
=====================


PHILIPPINE NATIONAL: Inks Joint Sale Of PNB Shares with Tan
------------------------------------------------------------
The combined 86 percent equity owned by the Philippine government
and tycoon Lucio Tan in the Philippine National Bank is climbing
up the block for sale as both parties are serious to go on a
joint sale of their PNB shares.

Favoring the joint sale, the government dumped a previous call-
option plan, which the government was supposed to sign with PNB
once the bank's rehabilitation plan would be ongoing.

Since it is the intention of the Arroyo administration "to
prioritize the privatization of the bank," and that Tan has made
pronouncements of his willingness to sell his shares, the plan
for the joint sale is already underway and firming up, according
to a report in the Philippine Star on Thursday.

But, Norberto Nazareno of Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp.
(PDIC) said in the same report, it would be necessary for both
parties to produce a new memorandum of agreement (MOU) that
should include a delineation of how to incorporate into the
bank's rehab plan PNB's total emergency loan of P25 billion from
both the PDIC and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).    

Nazareno also added that PDIC, as PNB's creditor, is mulling over
a probability of discounting the loan or giving it an extension
of a year when a new buyer is expected to surface.


URBAN BANK: Four Banks Bid to Buy Into Defunct Bank
---------------------------------------------------
Urban Bank and its investment house, Urbancorp Investment Inc.,
may have a new lease on life since four local commercial banks
have already expressed their intentions of buying into the bank.
Urban Bank has been closed down since April of last year.

According to a Manila Times report on Thursday, the president of
the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp (PDIC), Norberto Nazareno,
said the banks, whose identities he could not divulge yet, have
been given until March 16 to tender their formal proposals, all
of which will be evaluated until April 15. They will also have
until March 31 to do a due diligence on their financial status.

But if no agreement would be made by April 26, PDIC would have
the option to liquidate the bank. If so, revenues from the sale
of the bank would be used to pay taxes, creditors and depositors
and employee. The remainder would be distributed among
shareholders.

To operate as a commercial bank, Urban Bank would need a total of
at least P3.4 billion, 70 percent of which would need to comply
with minimum capital requirement, and the rest for the
reinstatement of its negative capital account.

PDIC has already expressed its willingness to lend P1.5 billion
to the new investor should it be needed to rehabilitate Urban
Bank. Also, to help facilitate Urban Bank's rehab measures,
depositors San Miguel Corp, Manila Electric Co, and Petron Corp
have all agreed to swap a quarter of their total deposits to
equity.

PDIC may also convince all of the bank's depositors, as a last
recourse, to do the same so that they won't have to liquidate the
bank. A management firm will be hired to manage the bank for
reopening. The bank would only need P3.5 billion to reopen,
equivalent to a quarter of its P14 billion deposits.


=================
S I N G A P O R E
=================


GOLDTRON LIMITED: Defers to Sanction on Capital Reduction
---------------------------------------------------------
Goldtron Limited, through its board, will defer for the time
being the proposed lodgement of the office copy of the High Court
of Singapore sanctioning the application of the company for
capital reduction to the Registrar of Companies, a media release
of the Singapore Stock Exchange said.

This was in consideration of the request of the investor that the
proposal be deferred until finalization of matters regarding
claims of creditors against the company stemming from a guarantee
and/or indemnity given to them on account of any of the Dynamar
entities and Goldtron Electronic entities and/or Goldtron
Services Pte Ltd.

At a meeting of the participating creditors held on February 22,
the extension of the period of the initial scheme of agreement
was approved for a further four months starting on February 26
until June 25 2001.

In consultation with the supplemental scheme managers and the
committee of participating creditors, the company is currently in
the process of finalizing the date on which the supplemental
scheme claim of each participating creditor will be ascertained.

Concurrently, the company and the supplemental scheme managers
were liaising with the guaranteed creditors to finalize their
respective decisions of whether to waive the benefits of the
supplemental scheme.

In this connection, the Company noted the condition of the
Securities Industry Council in respect of the Whitewash
Resolution that in order for the Investor to rely on the
Whitewash Resolution, the Investor must complete the subscription
of the new shares within three months from the date of approval
of the Whitewash Resolution, that is, before May 7, 2001.

The Company will continue to use its best endeavours to assist
all parties to fully implement the terms of the Supplemental
Scheme. The Company will make prompt and timely announcements of
further developments concerning the Supplemental Scheme in due
course.


===============
T H A I L A N D
===============


PREMIER FINANCE: FRA To Distribute Payout Among Creditors
---------------------------------------------------------
The Financial Sector Restructuring Agency (FRA) has allocated
Baht 30.5 billion, or an average of 31.44 percent of the
adjudicated amount for each creditor of the second group of 13
suspended companies. Only the creditors of Premier Finance Co.,
Ltd. are going to receive up to half of the claimed amount. All
the creditors are scheduled to receive payments by the end of
March.

Companies in the second group are the following: Country Finance
and Securities Co. Ltd., Lila Finance and Securities Co. Ltd.,
Siam Commercial Trust Co. Ltd., Thai - Oversea Trust Co. Ltd.,
Dhana Nakorn Finance and Securities Public Co. Ltd., Premier
Finance Co.Ltd., Bangkok Metropolitan Trust Co. Ltd., Union
Finance Public Co. Ltd., Bara Finance and Securities Public Co.
Ltd., Thai Financial Syndicate Public Co. Ltd., Thai Thamrong
Finance Co. Ltd. , Cathay Finance and Securities Public Co. Ltd.,
and Metropolis Trust and Securities Plc.

Creditors of the third group of 12 suspended companies, and the
fourth and fifth, will be informed of the results of the claim
adjudications thereafter until before middle of this year.

The FRA also released the list of five suspended companies that
had already been declared bankrupt. These are Asia Finance
Syndicate Plc., Siam City Credit Finance & Securities Plc., SCF
Finance & Securities Plc., Siam City Syndicate Finance &
Securities Plc., and Thanamass Finance Co. Ltd.


THONBURI AUTOMOTIVE: Court Nods to Firm's Rehab Plan
----------------------------------------------------
The Central Bankruptcy Court approved on Wednesday the business
rehabilitation plan of debt-laden Thonburi Automotive Assembly
Plant Co., Ltd., a report in the Bangkok Post said. The decision
was made despite objections and claims that the plan was
illegitimate that were filed in the court by a number of
creditors.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, a corporate restructuring firm, drafted
the plan.

The creditors that raised and endorsed the petition are the
Bangkok Bank Public Co. Ltd., Thai Farmers Bank Public Co. Ltd.,
and the Standard Chartered Nakornthon Bank. Thonburi Automotive
owed these petitioning creditors a total of over Baht 27 billion.

According to the report in the Post, the court believed that the
implementation of the approved plan would be beneficial to
parties concerned.


THAI TELEPHONE: Sees Door Out Of Bankruptcy Process
---------------------------------------------------
The bankruptcy proceedings of Thai Telephone and
Telecommunications Plc, the provincial fixed-line operator, may
be dismissed by April, but only after all of its creditors have
voted for its debt-restructuring plan.

According to EVP Witit Sajjapong, the plan is already 95 percent
complete and will be presented to all creditors next week for
approval. The plan proposes that the 40.6 billion baht in debt
will be divided among three groups, with longer repayment terms,
from 11.5 to 16.5 years. Debt-equity swap will be another option
that creditors can take, according to this plan, and proposals
will be welcomed by the company until March 16.   

Moreover, the plan will not only improve the company's liquidity,
but when it is approved, it is expected to help the company in
its search for a strategic partner, Witit said. But this may
happen, the Bangkok Post reported, only after the company has
converted its existing concession with the Telephone Organization
of Thailand, which collects 43.1 percent of the revenues.

Vice-president of Merrill Lynch Phatra Securities, Amarit
Sukhavanij believed otherwise, saying that the debt-restructuring
plan would hardly help brighten and raise TT&T's image and
prospects.

At this point, the company isn't pressed to enter into new
partnerships since the infusion of fresh money might dilute the
stakes of major stakeholders, like Jasmine International Plc,
Loxley Plc, Italian-Thai Development and Nippon Telephone and
Telegraph. Their combined shares hold 70 percent of TT&T.

Represented in the creditor's steering committee are supplier
Alcatel and financial creditors Sumitomo Bank, Thai Farmers Bank,
Bank Thai, Krung Thai, Credit Lyonnais and Credit Agricole
Indosuez.



S U B S C R I P T I O N  I N F O R M A T I O N

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