The board of Patisserie Holdings has revealed a winding up petition relating to a £1.1m unpaid tax bill.
The company said it had become aware today of a winding up petition in respect of Stonebeach Limited, its principal trading subsidiary.
The petition was filed at The High Court of Justice on 14 September and relates to sums due to HM Revenue & Customs of approximately £1.14m.
The update to the stock exchange said: “The company and its advisors are in communication with HMRC with the objective of addressing the petition.
“The company continues to engage with its professional advisers to understand better the financial position of the group and will make further announcements in due course.”
The Luke Johnson-chaired group this morning suspended its shares from trading on AIM after uncovering “significant, and potentially fraudulent, accounting irregularities”.
The company has launched a full investigation with its legal and professional advisers into its true financial position and has suspended chief financial officer Chris Marsh from his role.
The company has made no further comment on the extent of the blackhole discovered but it has been rumoured to be in excess of £20m. At its interim results in May the company said it had net cash on its balance sheet of £28.8m.
At Tuesday’s closing share price of 429½p, Patisserie Holdings had a market capitalisation of £446m, valuing Johnson’s 37% stake in the business at c£165m.
Precis
The crisis at Patisserie Holdings deepened yesterday afternoon when the group revealed the existence of a winding-up petition relating to a £1.1m tax bill. The Patisserie Valerie operator said it had only become aware yesterday of a the HMRC petition in respect of Stonebeach Limited, its principal trading subsidiary, despite it being filed at The High Court of Justice on 14 September. The company, which suspended trading in its shares yesterday morning after uncovering “significant, and potentially fraudulent, accounting irregularities”, is continuing to work with legal and professional advisers to assess its true financial position. The company has made no further comment on the extent of the blackhole discovered but it has been rumoured to be in excess of £20m. At its interim results in May the company said it had net cash on its balance sheet of £28.8m.
