Moore Kingston Smith appointed administrator for Powerbanks

On 19 May 2020, Ian Robert and Ryan Davies of Moore Kingston Smith Licensed Insolvency Practitioners (MKSLIP) were appointed joint administrators of Powerbanks Limited, a franchisee for a well-known fast-food franchiser as well as El Taco Loco, Roosters and Cafe Real.

By way of a pre-packaged sale, a portion of the business and assets were transferred to its shareholder Karali Leisure Limited, who had been supporting the business, and held substantial secured debt.

The business had 26 sites and this sale has enabled five sites to continue. It is hoped they will be open for trading once the government restrictions due to Coronavirus are lifted. While not all jobs could be retained, this transaction allowed for some of its staff to hold onto employment through continued furloughing support.

Ian Robert, Partner at MKSLIP, commented: “These are very challenging times, particularly for the restaurant and hospitality sector, in terms of trying to save businesses and livelihoods. This was a difficult situation and trying to save any part of a business where its entire income had been eradicated was always going to be a challenge. The government job retention scheme allowed the business the time to prepare for this transaction and give the buyer the optimism to take on the units that were saved. I am pleased that we could save part of this £10 million turnover operation.”