In January 1994, the electrical retailing group, Clydesdale Group plc, appointed receivers to oversee the dissolution of the company. The case study charts the history of Clydesdale through a drastic rationalization in the 1980’s and the subsequent dash for growth. The banks, which financed the expansion (at the start of the recession), finally refused additional cash as Clydesdale’s trading figures worsened, and called in the receivers. The banks did then recover their loans, but trade creditors were left with only 20p to 30p in the pound. This case study asks the question as to whether creditors should have foreseen the collapse, given, in particular, the publicly available Financial Statements (summaries in the exhibits).
