Purpose: Professional Opinion
Task: Asset Valuation & Realisation for Insolvency
Location: UK
Instructed by Mark Wilson, the Liquidator from RSM Restructuring Advisory LLP, Wyles Hardy & Co were tasked to provide advice concerning the realisation of assets in the UK from a subsidiary of “one of Hong Kong’s first Unicorns, Tink Labs” (The Financial Times). This company, which had formerly been valued at $1.5bn, had provided free-to-use relatively basic 4G Smartphones to hotel chains throughout Europe from their UK based company. Stock amounting to circa 100,000 Smartphones had sat in a warehouse in the Midlands for over 18 months, most of which was unused and boxed without software or instructions, with a modest amount of used / damaged returns stock.
Once various issues had been solved by RSM and Wyles Hardy a sale process was enacted via an informal tender process with a handful of bidders. Having secured the highest bid at above expectations, the payment in full from overseas was monitored, and engagement with the storage company (who had a Lien over the assets) successfully negotiated to facilitate the removal of assets, as well as a large quantity of non-hazardous waste by a licensed waste contractor. This was all achieved during a period of Lockdown due to Covid-19, and enabled the storage company to reutilise the space occupied by Tink Labs with a new customer who had a pressing requirement for their fulfilment services.