The curators of Thomas Cook Belgium want to know who is responsible for the transfer of 5 to 6 million euros to the UK, De Standaard, Het Nieuwsblad, Het Belang van Limburg and Gazet van Antwerpen wrote on Thursday.
"At the last minute, 5 to 6 million euros were transferred from Thomas Cook Belgium’s coffers to the UK. The money for boosting the Belgian business was gone," Hans De Meyer declared, on behalf of Thomas Cook Belgium curators. "We want to know who took the initiative. The question was put forth to the directors."
Thomas Cook Belgian companies were part of a joint fund with the rest of the group. The idea was that if a branch were temporarily short of money and another entity had a surplus, the first did not unnecessarily have to take a loan but could fall back on the group’s "cash pool".
This completely legal system works well in good times — not as well in hard times. Two days after the bankruptcy in the UK, the "cash pool" was suspended. The money had, however, already disappeared.
With 5 to 6 million euros, Thomas Cook Belgium would have had time to pursue its activities temporarily with the status of protection against creditors, while initiating discussions with potential investors for a recovery.
The Brussels Times
