Allied Farmers’ Rob Alloway jumps ship
Allied Farmers managing director Rob Alloway has resigned, eight months after the group took on the stricken Hanover finance loan book.
Mr Alloway will step down from his current role in December but will stay on the board in the meantime, the company said in a statement.
His resignation comes hard on the heels of the departure of chairman John Louchlin, who quit the board when subsidiary company Allied Nationwide Finance was placed in receivership on August 23.
Mr Alloway remains a significant shareholder through his private company Allied Capital.
He and Mr Louchlin drove the purchase of Hanover’s assets in a debt for equity swap last December.
Those assets – deemed to be worth $396 million when the deal went through – are now valued at $94.3 million.
Mr Alloway said: “With the restructuring process now coming to an end, and several asset realisations likely in the short term, the company will be in a different position in December when I step down.”
Allied Farmers this week gained a two-week extension on filing its annual results after the firm's finance arm was put in receivership.
The group is also renegotiating the terms of its bank facility with Westpac following the receivership.
Allied Farmers' senior debt to Westpac totals $16.9 million, consisting of a multi-option credit facility of $14.4 million and an overdraft of $2.5 million.
However, as some of the Hanover assets contained further debt to other trading banks and second tier financiers, total group debt as at December 31 blew out to $79 million.
Allied temporarily withdrew a planned $19.3 million capital raising via a rights issue when the finance arm breached its trust deed ratios earlier this month, before going into receivership.
Mr Alloway said his key goal at Allied had been to establish a more stable financial platform and “normalise” the company’s banking and other commercial arrangements.
“We are expecting this process will be completed in the next few weeks leaving the business with substantially reduced senior debt and feel it is right to now give the board time to identify a new CEO to take the company forward after a challenging period,” he said.
“We’ve had to make some very tough decisions along the way but we are now close to reaching the stable ground we need to rebuild what I still believe will be a very sound and respected rural services business.”
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Comments and questions30
Maybe he could join Lachie McLeod and Peter Bosworth's consultancy company??
Gutless. Cant even see out the job. Jumping from a sinking ship.
The rats are leaving the sinking ship. [In their Audis]
Hope he doesn't get a bonus.
What a sick joke this has been for Hanover and Allied Investors.
Another tax payer bailout coming up prior to Oct 31 with Alloway's company in a good position to profit on bonds as in SCF debacle?
This guy is a real plonker , he was a lamb to Hotchins slaughter , he is now unemployable ,
This ship is going down with the receiver and the rats are running down the ropes to go and plunder another lot of investors.
He will not be unemployable, the old boys network will give him a nice role as a director - most of them are incompetent (and incontinent) anyway.
Get out before one's image is tarnished?
Did he jump or was he pushed ?
Judge Bill Wilson should take note.
So the two hayseeds who thought they could do a deal with Hotchin and Watson and not lose their shirts (and those of their shareholders) have now gone. Lambs to the slaughter is exactly right and lots of people - including me - said that in posts on NBR site at the time.
Australian businessmen and the Hanover boys just love dealing with top NZ business brains like these two and it's easy to see why. Any time there are dodgy, overvalued assets, a failing airline, fifth rate telco or discount retail chain to unload they know who to call. (Honourable exception: Graeme Hart).
Have to agree with Hand over though - i'm sure he'll be well looked after by his mates.
Alloway is probably joining Brian Fitzgerald and Marc Lindale ( ex Strategic Finance ) at Triumph Capital and then they can all start the third reincarnation of a new generation finance company.
Rob can go the same way as Hotchy and Watson leave the country and not come back. Somehow we have to get rid of these commercial terrorists and move on!
A real gutless wonder. Duped all those Hanover investors into thinking they were buying into a company that could recoup their money. So-called $400milion dollars' worth of assets gets wriiten down to around 90 mill, in less than 6 months. Knock off another 25%, next month.
Always had my doubts, about this guy. When he speaks, he gestures like he's playing Rock-Paper-Scissors, all by himself.
reality is there is something quite smelly here on the overall deal between Hanover & Allied - you see if Rob was very smart he would have done decent DD on Hanover - surey it was his duty as an officer of the company, so given he obviously (well it seems that way) he did not, that leaves a few questions that need an answer on the real scenario - so was he actually in on the deal with Waton & Hotchin on some some sort of back hander? if not then is so useless and stupid? that being the case the board has been very negligent in hiring such a fool? no matter how you stack this deal, there is something that lurks beneath that has been at the expense of all the debenture / shareholders - perhaps Simon Power should look here to, as it would appear another dodgy deal has been done
When Allied took over the Handover loan book it wan't because they could see huge upside. It was because they were so damn desperate themsleves to get capital.
One deperate company was well and truely screwed by two not so desperate individuals, Eric and Mark. They saw Rob coming and instinctively knew it was do or die, and they did they hung Rob out to die.
A sobering leason, never, but never do business with the likes of Eric or Mark. Not even their mothers are safe, and I'd be surprised if their mother in law has any gold fillings left either..
Allied is going into receivership very soon
Another useless NZ'er professing to have managerial skills bailing out as too gutless to face the inevitable music. The guy has always been full of bluff and blunder. Allied is history now as understand rural offices scaled back and not giving farmers any credit and have minimal services now anyway. This country really is fast turning into a Banana Republic run by a bunch of idiots (the government too pretty inept)
The sooner all this financial crap gets cleared out the better... Who votes to put Allied in to statutory mgmt????????????
Another media darling along with Hubbard unrtil it all turned to custard!
anti Mark and Eric stuff? They really are great guys, I heard that immature clown that runs the junior request session on ZB Breakfsat say so!!
Alloway, "jumps ship", you report? Quick! Someone, throw him an anvil, as a life ring.
Many of the NBR comments seem to ignore, or be so uninformed, that they dont realise that Alloway has severely rodgered mark and eric leaving a sting in the tail for these overseas ex Kiwi's. Alloway 40 - eric and mark 15 - Alloway serving for game, set and match. Uninformed crowd dont understand the scoreboard
Agree! having difficulty seeing the match and the scoreboard because those in the cheap seats are blocking the view....
Hear his spin, along the lines of: I've laid the groundwork for a recovery. I leave, knowing the company is in good shape, to meet the challenges, ahead.
...then why don't you identify yourself from the other 1000's of anons posting this sort of stuff. Bit childish.
Na na na na naa...
Please just remember:
I TOLD YOU SO !!!!!
He must be living it up with hotchy now!!
Allied Farmers rewarded Alloway, well. But Hotchie and Watsey, rewarded him, even more.
Short Sell Allied Farmers Shares
Still confused about him rattling on about how he personally made more money as the Handover value kept dropping. I just think he is one of those folk that deserve to be thoroughly questioned by the SFO. And soon.
...any government comment on these dodgy bods?
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