Former Masterchef judge George Calombaris has come under the spotlight again after reports emerged that his Yo-Chi yogurt chain was refusing to pay liquidators a $140,000 debt.
The high-end frozen yogurt chain, which Calombaris owns, owes Calombaris’ restaurant empire, MAdE Establishment, hundreds of thousands of dollars.
But according to liquidator KordaMentha, Yo-Chi will not be able to repay the outstanding debt, the sun herald reported.
KordaMentha is responsible for raising $1.32 million in funds to pay the bill for employee salaries and entitlements to MAdE creditors.
But the $140,000, which was granted as a “business-to-business loan” from MAdE to Yo-Chi, will not be recovered because liquidators realized the yogurt chain could not repay the debt.
“Following correspondence with one of Yo-Chi’s shareholders, the liquidators have concluded that it would not be commercial to pursue the outstanding loan balance as Yo-Chi has minimal cash and ‘recoverable assets’, according to a KordaMentha report reported by the sun herald.
“Furthermore, Made Establishment’s claim is as an unsecured creditor of Yo-Chi and we know of a secured creditor who would take precedence over Made Establishment’s claim in any formal insolvency process.”
So far, KordaMentha has raised $820,000 through the liquidation process, which will be directed to CBA – the main secured creditor – but other parties have been warned not to expect to see the money recovered.
The Commonwealth Bank owes $8.8 million, but it is estimated that the bank will only recover $1 million.
Creditors have been left out by a whopping $22.3 million after the explosive pay theft scandal saw the MAdE establishment collapse in February.
Company documents revealed that MAdE’s company bank account only had $389 when it was closed.
Many small creditors, such as MAdE Establishment’s suppliers, also owe money.
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