South Canterbury Finance

The five defendants accused in New Zealand's biggest corporate fraud case have been granted name suppression and an adjournment in Timaru District Court.

The biggest alleged corporate fraud case in New Zealand history will be called for the first time in Timaru today.

The $1.7 billion fraud charges involving South Canterbury Finance are expected to allege the company duped Treasury when it applied for admission to the Crown retail deposit guarantee scheme, the Serious Fraud Office has indicated.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has laid charges following its investigation into South Canterbury Finance, SFO chief executive Adam Feeley said in a statement yesterday.

Land the Government "inherited" through its $1.7 billion South Canterbury Finance bailout may be offered to Christchurch residents forced out of their quake-damaged homes, Prime Minister John Key says.

The death of Timaru financier Allan Hubbard makes little difference to the ongoing sale of his businesses - but compassion is being exercised.

Receivers of South Canterbury Finance receivers have forced three companies of St Clair developer Stephen Chittock into receivership over a $1.5 million debt - just days after they were placed into voluntary administration.

South Canterbury Finance is owed $188.6 million by two Allan Hubbard-controlled companies, but receiver McGrath Nicol is withholding further details so as not to prejudice any legal proceedings.

South Canterbury Finance's receivers say they have reached a milestone with the sale of $100 million in commercial loan assets to the world's biggest finance company, GE Capital.

"Receivership appears to be the only alternative", insolvency specialists KordaMentha told the Treasury in a report just six days before South Canterbury Finance imploded into its billion-dollar demise.