PWC may pursue Deutsche Bank affiliate over £20m E-Clear debt

PricewaterhouseCoopers is considering pursuing an affiliate of Deutsche Bank for £20 million owed by E-Clear following Globespan’s collapse.

According to The Independent this weekend, the accountancy firm is currently holding internal discussions about seeking to recoup the money it thinks Globespan is owed by E-Clear from Pago.

Pago is part-owned by Deutsche Bank and handled E-Clear’s banking side until it terminated the relationship last year.

While there is no suggestion of any wrongdoing on Pago’s behalf, the administrator is considering whether it has a claim against it and whether it could mount a legal challenge to recover funds it believes are owed to Globespan’s administrators.

Globespan collapsed in December, with much of the blame being placed on E-Clear’s own failure as it owed the airline around £35 million at the time.

A High Court hearing has since found a further £100 million hole in E-Clear’s finances which could yet be subject to a Serious Fraud Office investigation.

A meeting of Globespan’s creditors is scheduled for March 23 in Edinburgh’s Caledonia hotel.