The Federal Court judgment, granting Dick Smith's administrators a six-month extension on holding its second creditors' meeting, included some interesting details.
According to the court documents, the Dick Smith directors, including chairman Rob Murray and former chief executive Nick Abboud, have fallen behind with their homework and have yet to provide a report as to the affairs of the failed companies in the group.
"The administrators have granted an extension to the directors until 29 January, 2016, to do so. The directors have submitted a request for a further extension until 19 February, 2016. The request is currently under consideration," said the court document.
The RATA might come in handy as the administrators try to determine what went wrong at the group "and to determine whether funds are available to be recovered or claims pursued".
But CBD took a quick squiz at the annual report from last year which shows that the company was clearly sailing a little close to the wind.
Operating cash flow for the last financial year ending June 28 was negative, the company had $29.5 million cash, $53 million of receivables due, and payables totalling $228 million.
The $293 million worth of inventories was obviously meant to bridge this precarious gap as the retailer geared up for the big Christmas sales binge.
We know how that one ended.
Seoul classics
While Nic Moore was busy distracting the financial world with Macquarie Group's operational briefing on Thursday, CBD was tuning into the latest musical release from the head of its Korean operations, John Walker.
Your columnist has been a big fan of Walker since the release of his first album some years back, and Rain Dreaming has been worth the wait.
"Like 12 Bridges before it, the songs combine slick professional musicianship with the unique perspectives of an Australian country boy who has become a truly global citizen. With virtuoso performances from some of Asia's leading session musicians, Rain Dreaming is re-defining the term World Music," says Walker's web site.
"The breakout Country & Western tune Waiting for the Rain promises to be the special hymn for those farming communities around the world who are facing long dry spells."
But wait, there's more.
Walker has long since gone native in South Korea, and is an exponent of the country's martial art, taekwondo. He has even joined the governing body as chairman of the marketing committee of the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).
And being a Macquarie guy, Walker obviously knows a thing or two about synergy, so one of the new songs on his album, Flying Butterflies, was specially written as the theme song for the WTF's Taekwondo Humanitarian Foundation.
The foundation "aims to empower refugees and displaced persons worldwide with the exercise, discipline, martial art and Olympic sport of taekwondo".
WTF president Chungwon Choue has charged the Swiss-based foundation with dispatching instructors to refugee camps worldwide to teach taekwondo, Olympism and related values.
Palmersaurus wrecks
Clive Palmer has probably got other things to worry about at the moment, but a recent decision by the Takeovers Panel must have come to his attention.
Palmer has been battling the villa owners at his Coolum Resort, whose timeshares are managed via the unlisted public company called The President's Club (TPC).
The battle goes back to 2012 – not long after Palmer took over the resort but before the animatronic dinosaurs were introduced – and tried to take control of the TPC via two of his entities.
The entities associated with Palmer got a rap over the knuckles in 2012 from ASIC and the Takeovers Panel over a bid to acquire TPC.
Palmer fought back and in May last year the Federal Court overturned the panel's finding of "unacceptable circumstances". Which was great for Clive.
But the courts also threw the matter back to the panel to make a determination according to law. Whatever that is.
Last week, the takeover panel made a declaration of unacceptable circumstances.
It has decided that an appropriate remedy is to peg back the voting rights of Palmer's entities from 41.4 per cent to roughly 20 per cent.
Got a tip? ckruger@fairfaxmedia.com.au
