Barclay Brothers was given six weeks to avoid bankruptcy after the HSBC action

Howard and Aidan Barclay have been given six weeks to reach an agreement with creditors after HSBC issued bankruptcy proceedings linked to the collapse of the family’s property empire.

At the High Court on Tuesday, Mr Justice Michael Briggs gave the brothers until March 17 to circulate proposals for individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs), a formal insolvency process that allows debtors to agree payment terms with creditors and avoid bankruptcy.

The brothers are the eldest sons of the late Sir David Barclay, who, with his twin brother Sir Frederick Barclay, built a thriving business empire through the acquisition of commodities. Much of that empire has since broken.

HSBC started bankruptcy proceedings in December over debts stemming from the collapse of Logistics Group, the parent company of delivery companies Yodel and ArrowXL. The group went into administration in March 2024 after HSBC called in the loan.

The management received just £1.1 million of HSBC’s £143.5 million secured loan, representing less than 1p in the pound, according to Teneo’s filing at Companies House.

IVAs allow people to retain more control of their assets than in bankruptcy, but they need the support of creditors representing at least 75 percent of the outstanding debt. It is not clear whether HSBC will support the Barclay brothers’ proposal or continue to be defrauded. The bank declined to comment.

The next court hearing is scheduled for March 31.

The collapse of the property was one of many blows to the Barclay family. In recent years, the family has lost control of the Telegraph Media Group and The Very Group.

In 2023, American private equity firm RedBird Capital Partners and Abu Dhabi-backed International Media Investments acquired nearly £1.2 billion of debt held by Lloyds Banking Group which was behind family businesses.

IMI has since appointed creditors to Interpath Advisory to liquidate assets held by Trenport Property Holdings, one of the family’s vehicles. Last year’s documents listed Aidan Barclay’s main destination as Monaco.

As part of the Logistics Group’s management, ArrowXL was sold in June to the Jacky Perrenot Group for an initial consideration of £2.2 million, well below the £57.5 million valuation previously set by directors. Yodel was sold in February 2024, just before administrators were appointed.

The Barclay family gave up control of Very in November after US private equity firm Carlyle Group took over, with IMI remaining as a lender.

Meanwhile, the long-running saga over the Telegraph headlines continues. A proposed £500m sale of RedBird fell through in November after regulatory intervention, increasing uncertainty since Lloyds took over the papers in 2023. The owner of the Daily Mail is now poised to acquire the Telegraph, a deal expected to face scrutiny from competition regulators.

The Barclay brothers have been contacted for comment.