Engineering firm Obelisk Industrial goes bust, BNZ and Kiwibank among creditors owed $11m
Ecovis said attempts to restructure the business failed, 'culminating with an alleged misappropriation of a significant amount of funds by the director'.
Secured creditors, including Kiwibank and BNZ, were owed $6.7m while more than was $1m was due to preferential creditor Inland Revenue. Unsecured creditors were owed $2.5m.
The largest asset quantified as available to be realised was $2.2m in related-party receivables.
A day after it entered liquidation, United Steel appointed receivers KhovJones under the terms of a general security agreement to try to recover the $240,007 it was owed.
The administrators' reports said the liquidators and receivers were working together to try to sell the business and assets of the company as a going concern.
Obelisk's website said it offered crane hire and performed welding, seismic strengthening and fabricated structural steel and provided an explanation for its name.
'An Obelisk represents the enormous power that hides behind the daily decisions made by everyone involved in a team. It also signifies the need for every person to dedicate their efforts to the advancement of a single goal – to ultimately leave behind an achievement that will continue to stand in both metaphorical and literal terms,' the company said.
A request for comment to the Culham family, sent through a representative, was not responded to by publication.
Matt Nippert is an Auckland-based investigations reporter covering white-collar and transnational crimes and the intersection of politics and business. He has won more than a dozen awards for his journalism – including twice being named Reporter of the Year – and joined the Herald in 2014 after having spent the decade prior reporting from business newspapers and national magazines.
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NZ Herald
27 minutes ago
- NZ Herald
The double tax hitting ratepayers in the pocket, another rate cut looms and concrete data shows hard times roll on
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Liam Dann is business editor-at-large for the New Zealand Herald. He is a senior writer and columnist, and also presents and produces videos and podcasts. He joined the Herald in 2003. To sign up to hisweekly newsletter, click on your user profile at and select 'My newsletters'. For a step-by-step guide, click here. If you have a burning question about the quirks or intricacies of economics send it to or leave a message in the comments section.
RNZ News
27 minutes ago
- RNZ News
Living apart together or bird nesting? Divorce in a tough property market
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She said people looking for a lawyer should be prepared to ask questions about how much it would cost, who they would be working with, and what style or approach would be used. "I think that's a piece that isn't thought about because you know 'so and so said the neighbour had so and so lawyer who, you know, was a bulldog''... So everyone's scenario is completely different. It might be not the right approach for you." She said people who tried to make decisions when they were emotionally disregulated could end up worse off. Sometimes people who were dealing with someone who had a high conflict personality would choose to walk away with a bad deal because they just wanted to be finished with it. "One of the biggest things I see in my practise is 75 percent of women having no idea about their finances, which is huge. "You know, everyone needs to know what they own and owe, because if you end up separating, the last thing you want to do is have to get a court order to get transparency of your assets and liabilities. "I think also every woman needs to get a job, whether it's a something they do voluntarily or always keeping their hand in something because your relationship's not guaranteed, and I think we see a lot of women putting their heads in the sand and thinking well, she'll be right. Well, she won't be right, you know." She said she was seeing a lot of "women walk away" syndrome where women who were tired of "doing everything and not getting anything in return" left a relationship, and people separating later in life. "Older people think … 'I've only got 20 summers left, I'm out of here'. We see a lot of those now, the older age group now separating." It was often difficult for people to get back on their feet financially at that point, she said. "Particularly if you're the female and you haven't worked and you know and you're sort of 65, 70, what that looks like, but yeah, we definitely see more and more of that." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
11 hours ago
- RNZ News
'Farmluencer' creates online community for female farmers
Anthea Rolfe. Photo: Supplied/Anthea Rolfe A Canterbury dairy farmer has created an online community for other females in farming to share her knowledge and connect with her peers. Anthea Rolfe left her corporate job in the aviation industry in Auckland 18 years ago to get into farming and hasn't looked back. She said she never knew it was even an option for her to farm and now milks 1250 cows, which she juggles with being a solo mum to her 12-year-old son. "I just know what it's like to juggle kids, home, farm, all that kind of stuff, and you end up putting yourself last. "And so I just thought, how can I create a community to help empower people, like women, and try and restore some of that sort of feel-good factor." Rolfe started the Females in Farming social media page a year ago and said it just exploded, gaining a following quickly. She's gone on to expand the brand with a practical and comfortable clothing range for on farm and a farming hub where she shares her knowledge from the industry. "There's really a need for this sort of thing here and it's just evolved into becoming the clothing range and the polished farmer hub," she said. "So yeah, it's been really good, really positive." Rolfe said her favourite part of being a dairy farmer is the cows - they're her favourite animal. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
