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Tower 185 in Frankfurt: This is where the real estate company Corestate is based
Photo: Alfons Hauke / IMAGO / imagebroker
So far, the real estate company Corestate has been able to keep the seething behind its own scenes somewhat hidden, but that is now over: Chief Financial Officer
Udo Giegerich
has filed a lawsuit against Corestate at the Frankfurt Regional Court.
The court confirmed this when asked by manager magazin.
Apparently, the CFO is resisting a warning that is said to have been sent to him two months ago.
Giegerich himself did not want to comment on this and Corestate also declared that he did not want to comment on "personnel matters and speculation associated with them".
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CFO Udo Giegerich is said to have filed a lawsuit at the Frankfurt Regional Court.
Photo: PR
The lawsuit in court reveals only the tip of the chaos at Corestate.
For weeks, the ailing group is said to have been in negotiations for a bond expiring in November and one in April.
So far, not a cent has been repaid, they say.
The first bond in the amount of 200 million euros expires on the 28th of this month.
The second bond ends on April 15 and amounts to 300 million euros.
As the Handelsblatt reported, the attempt to obtain permission from the shareholders to issue new shares failed on Thursday.
"Either the company will go bankrupt or the bondholders will get involved in a bad deal," says an insider.
The bondholders, which include Pimco, are prepared to waive a significant portion of the claims if a restructuring expert were installed on the real estate company's board.
On the other hand, none other than company boss Stavros Efremidis should resist, who sees his power endangered.
Corestate explains that "Corestate's management and committees focus their entire attention on creating a viable, long-term perspective for the company, its approximately 500 employees and the other stakeholders".
Unfortunately, that would not be in the hands of the real estate company alone.
CEO Efremidis under pressure
The negotiations are currently at a standstill "since there is nothing left to negotiate," it said.
Efremidis is therefore under pressure and should not cut a good figure.
"He just yells, yells at the board members and his employees, threatens to sue," says a source.
"Nor does the fact that the CEO wears multiple hats make negotiations any easier," adds another insider.
"The hat of the major shareholder and that of the board of directors."
Efremidis has a stake of almost 9 percent in Corestate.
The bondholders are also said to be dissatisfied and see the standstill in negotiations as a break-off.
"You are of the opinion that the deal has burst and that a report to the capital markets is necessary," it says.
So far, however, nothing has been reported by Corestate, also because its own lawyers do not share the opinion of the bondholders and do not consider a report to be necessary.
So far, the bondholders have not commented.
Corestate itself explains that it is "of course in close talks with the bondholders and other investors and of course offers maximum transparency in these talks and is looking for a viable solution for everyone involved".