Collapsed Newcastle property company High Street Group is finally set to be liquidated, leaving private investors millions of pounds out of pocket. The developer, known for its flagship Hadrian Tower site in Newcastle city centre , has been wound up and the Official Receiver appointed as a liquidator. It draws to an end several years of efforts by administrators to recoup £123m owed to private investors, many of whom had put their own savings into the firm on the promise of high returns.
Last month, insolvency specialists handling the group's affairs said there was nothing more that could be done to realise money owed to loan note holders, and creditors of the business who are owed an additional £87.7m. They had turned to Hadrian Real Estate, a company which assumed control of High Street Group properties and projects, in the hope it could generate returns for investors, but investigations have pointed to that being unlikely for several years.
Read more: North East mayor demands Tyne and Wear Metro improvement and answers on delayed new fleet Keep up to date with all the latest breaking news and top stories from the North East with our free newsletter High Street Group had suffered financial difficulties and delays to construction projects during the pandemic, with one of its subsidiaries being placed into administration in 2019 after failing to repay an overseas lender. Administrators said it had struggled to handle requests from a large number of small loan note holders for early redemption of their investments. Last month it became clear there was little promise of money being recouped via the insolvency process, and administrators applied to the High Court for the business to be wound up.
Part of the Official Receiver's responsibilities, including winding down the company, is to look at the conduct of its directors. In recent days, Hadrian's Tower - Newcastle's tallest - has been listed for sale with a £14.6m asking price.
Marketing materials show more than a third of the luxury flats in the 26 storey building remain unsold. In addition to the tower, High Street Group had been involved in plans to develop land near St James' Park and the former Brett Oils site on the Tyne. As well as the £123m owed to loan note holders, administrators' documents should HMRC claimed to be owed about £1m and other unsecured creditors were owed more than £87.
7m, of which there had been £4.7m of claims made. Join our Breaking News and Top Stories WhatsApp community for all the latest news direct to your phone.
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