Luke Johnson faces shareholders at Patisserie Holdings
Chairman Luke Johnson has agreed to provide a £10m, three-year interest-free loan and a further bridging loan of up to £10m to allow the bakery chain to keep trading.
Patisserie Holdings is today seeking approval from shareholders to issue a further £15.7m in shares.
It comes after the company’s shock announcement on 10 October that it had uncovered a £40m black hole in its accounts.
The group’s finance director Chris Marsh was suspended from his role on 9 October, and resigned as finance director last week.
In a statement on the London Stock Exchange Patisserie Holdings said that it would not provide “any new information” at today’s general meeting and was restricted from answering certain questions so as not to prejudice the ongoing investigation in to its accounts.
“The company is continuing to work with its professional advisers to understand the extent of the previously announced financial misstatements and potential fraudulent activity,” the group said.
“As this work is ongoing, the board is not yet in a position to advise on when the suspension to trading in the ordinary shares will be lifted.”
It comes after David Scott, former chief executive of the Druckers Vienna Patisserie chain, issued a statement on the Stock Exchange dismissing reports he was planning a takeover bid for Patisserie Valerie.
Patisserie Valerie bought Druckers in 2007.
