Court date set for Stone administration hearing

Judge to decide if Stone Bidco liquidation can go ahead

A court date has been set for the next stage of the administration saga surrounding a Stone holding company.

Stone Bidco was put into administration in August as the company looked to tidy up its "unwieldy" balance sheet. The firm, a holding company set up during the 2008 management buyout, was immediately replaced with a new company - Granite One Hundred Holdings.

But the Stone Bidco administration hit a snag when shareholders - including former CEO James Bird - weighed in and said the process would mean they would lose out on significant sums of cash.

Because not all shareholders were in agreement about the future of the company, the decision has been referred to the High Court, where a judge will decide the next steps.

The High Court hearing will take place on 30 November in Birmingham, court officials confirmed to CRN.

Simon Harbridge, Stone Group's chief executive, said he is optimistic that the case will result in Bidco's liquidation - his preferred outcome.

"There's a whole long list of proposals but the only difference in any of them is what type of liquidation it is," he said. "Essentially [the purpose of the case] is to put Bidco into liquidation and [for the administrator] to approve his fees - those are the two matters of business. The most likely outcome is the judge will say ‘ok then'."