A High Court Judge has rejected a proposal made by the Issa brothers, recent acquirers of the Asda supermarket chain, to restructure Café Nero in attempt to save it from entering a CVA.

The CVA was passed by creditors on 30 November 2020 following a buildup of rent arrears to Café Nero landlords, with a hope of distributing a 30p in the pound return to creditors and reduce future rents and services charges going forward.

This challenge was brought to the court by Ronald Young, a Café Nero landlord who received monetary aid from the Issa brothers. A bid was made by EG Group, the main holding company of the brothers, to take over the chain the day before the vote last November and Mr Young sought to challenge the CVA on the grounds of ‘material irregularity and unfair prejudice’.

Mr Justice Green later rejected this proposal and refrained from delaying the CVA vote as the bid was too late.  

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