战略投资者如何介入破产重整？

近来，受金融危机、行业性亏损等多重因素影响，数家拥有相当行业地位的企业陷入了债务危机。在看好这些企业长远发展的情况下，有战略投资者在其破产重整阶段注资并购，在使企业重获经营能力的同时，也降低了并购成本。
法律属性
就法律属性而言，破产重整是《企业破产法》所确立的一项制度。
破产重整是对可能或已经发生破产原因但又有希望再生的债务人，通过各方协商并借助法律强制性地调整各方利益，对债务人进行生产经营上的整顿和债权债务关系上的清理，以摆脱财务困境，重获经营能力的特殊法律程序。
破产重整程序完全区别于一般意义上的债务重组或公司重组。它是基于破产法律制度，在法院司法平台上组织进行的旨在消除债务人破产原因的法律程序。破产重整的结果并非单纯的“ 新生”，在重整不成的情况下，债务人将依照破产法的规定进入破产清算程序。
基本流程梳理
企业出现《破产法》规定的重整事由，即“ 不能清偿到期债务，并且资产不足以清偿全部债务或者明显缺乏清偿能力”。债权人和债务人直接向法院提出重整申请。此外，在债权人申请对债务人进行破产清算，法院受理申请后宣告破产前，债务人或者出资额占债务人注册资本十分之一以上的出资人，可以向法院申请重整。
对于重整申请，法院经审查认为符合法律规定的，应当裁定债务人重整，并应当自裁定受理破产申请之日起二十五日内通知已知债权人，同时予以公告。
公告内容包括其所指定管理人的基本情况、申报债权的期限、第一次债权人会议召开时间（应在债权申报期满之日起15日内）和地点等。
债权人在限定期限内（公告之日起最短30日、最长三个月）向管理人申报债权，管理人对申报的债权进行审查，编制债权表并提交第一次债权人会议核查。
进入破产重整阶段后，经债务人申请且法院批准，债务人可以在管理人的监督下自行管理财产和经营业务。自法院裁定之日起6个月内（经请求，法院可裁定延期3个月），债务人应同时向法院和债权人会议提交重整计划草案。未按期提交的，法院应当裁定终止重整程序，并宣告破产，进入破产清算程序。
法院应当自收到重整计划草案之日起30 日内召开债权人会议，由债权人分组进行表决。各表决组通过草案的，重整计划即为通过；未获得通过则依《破产法》87条进入破产清算。
批准申请
重整计划通过之日起10日内，债务人和管理人应当向法院提出批准其重整计划草案的申请。法院审查认为合法的，应当自收到之日起30日内裁定批准，终止重整程序并予以公告。法院批准的重整计划草案对债务人和全体债权人均具有约束力。企业随之进入重整计划的执行程序，由债务人负责执行。
在重整计划规定的监督期内，由管理人监督该计划的执行。监督期内，债务人应当向管理人报告重整计划的执行情况和收入财务情况。监督期届满，管理人向法院提交监督报告。报告之日管理人监督职责终止。经管理人申请，法院可以裁定延长监督期限。
重整计划执行期限届满，债务人对公司执行完毕使其恢复良好状态的，重整程序结束，公司恢复正常运行。债务人不能执行或者不执行重整计划的，法院经管理人或者利害关系人的请求，应当裁定终止重整计划的执行，并宣告债务人破产。此后公司进入破产清算程序。
战略投资问题
重整的过程是债权人、债务人企业、原有出资人及战略投资者之间的博弈过程。笔者认为，战略投资者介入重整应重点开展如下工作，包括：
借助法院、管理人核查债务人企业既有债务情况，锁定债务，并与债权人就既有债务的削减进行沟通对债务人企业的资产经营情况进行核查，测算注资重整后企业的经营状况和债务清偿能力；取得金融机构债权人的支持，沟通长期贷款展期、短期贷款接续以及融资成本控制等债务重组方案；同原有出资人确定转让股权条件；债务人企业治理结构的重新建立、内部控制建设及实现路径；包括税务、所在地政府支持等外部条件的落实等。
在此基础上，战略投资人提出投资方案并主导管理人提出重整计划，就后续经营、债权调整及受偿、重整和监督期限、企业治理及内控目标的实现等提出具体方案，以获得债权人会议的通过。
How strategic investors can become involved in bankruptcy reorganisation
With respect to enterprises that have slipped into a debt crisis, some th respect to enterprises that have strategic investors have injected capital and effected acquisitions at their bankruptcy reorganisation stage which, while allowing the enterprises to recover their business capacity, also reduces the acquisition costs.
In terms of legal nature, bankruptcy reorganisation is a system established by the Enterprise Bankruptcy Law. It is a special legal process where a debtor that is in danger of going or has already gone bankrupt, but has prospects of resurrection, can – through consultations among the involved parties, and by virtue of a legally mandated adjustment of their interests and a reorganisation of the debtor’s production and operations, and straightening out of its claim and debt relationships – extricate itself from its financial difficulties and recover its business capacity.
A bankruptcy reorganisation procedure is completely different from a commonplace debt re structuring or corporate restructuring. The outcome of a bankruptcy reorganisation is not just a simple “new lease of life”, because if the reorganisation is unsuccessful, the debtor will undergo a bankruptcy liquidation procedure.
Basic procedure
When the grounds for a reorganisation as specified in the Bankruptcy Law arises, namely the enterprise “becomes insolvent and its assets are insufficient to discharge all of its debts, or it clearly lacks the capacity to discharge such debts”, the creditors and debtor submit a reorganisation application directly to the court. Furthermore, when a creditor applies for the bankruptcy liquidation of a debtor, the debtor, or an investor whose capital contribution accounts for at least 10% of the debtor’s registered capital, may apply to the court for reorganisation after the court accepts the creditor’s application and before it declares the debtor bankrupt.
If the court finds the application legitimate, it will render a ruling for the reorganisation of the debtor and notify the known creditors, and make an announcement within 25 days from the date on which it ruled to accept the bankruptcy petition. The contents of the announcement will include the basic particulars of the administrator appointed by the court, the deadline for reporting claims and the time when, and the place where, the first creditors’ meeting will be held (which should be within 15 days of the date of expiration of the deadline for reporting claims).
The creditors are to report their claims to the administrator by the specified deadline – at minimum 30 days and at maximum three months from the announcement date – and the administrator will review the claims reported, prepare a list of the claims and submit it to the first creditors’meeting for verification.
Once the bankruptcy reorganisation stage has commenced, the debtor may, subject to an application by it and the approval of the court, manage its property and operate its business under the supervision of the administrator. Within six months – and subject to a petition, the court may rule to extend that period by three months – from the date of the ruling by the court, the debtor should submit a draft of its reorganisation plan to the court and the creditors’ meeting. If it fails to submit a plan by the deadline, the court is required to render a ruling terminating the reorganisation procedure and declare the debtor bankrupt, at which point the bankruptcy liquidation procedure begins.
The court will call a creditors’ meeting within 30 days of receiving the draft reorganisation plan. If each of the voting classes votes for the draft, the reorganisation plan is adopted. If it is not adopted, bankruptcy liquidation commences pursuant to article 87 of the Bankruptcy Law.
Application for approval
The debtor and administrator are required to submit to the court an application for approval of the draft reorganisation plan within 10 days of adopting the reorganisation plan. If the court deems it lawful after review, it will render a ruling approving it, terminate the reorganisation procedure and make an announcement within 30 days from the date of receipt. The draft reorganisation plan approved by the court is binding on the debtor and all of the creditors. The enterprise then enters into the reorganisation plan execution procedure, with the debtor responsible for execution.
The administrator supervises the execution of the reorganisation plan during the supervision period specified in the plan. During the supervision period, the debtor has to report to the administrator on the execution of the reorganisation plan and its income and financial position. At the expiration of the supervision period, the administrator submits a supervision report to the court. The administrator’s supervision duties terminate on the report date. Subject to an application by the administrator, the court may rule to extend the supervision period.
If the reorganisation plan is executed successfully, the reorganisation procedure terminates and the company returns to normal operations. If the debtor is unable or fails to execute the reorganisation plan, the court is required, subject to a petition from the administrator or a materially interested person, to render a ruling terminating execution of the reorganisation plan and declare the debtor bankrupt. Thereafter, the company enters the bankruptcy liquidation procedure.
Issue of strategic investment
A reorganisation process is a game process played out among the creditors, the debtor enterprise, the existing investors and strategic investors. The author is of the opinion that when a strategic investor gets involved in a restructuring, it should focus on the following key tasks: relying on the information on the existing debts of the debtor enterprise ascertained by the court and administrator to get a lock on the debts, and communicating with the creditors on reducing the existing debts; conducting a check on the assets and operations of the debtor enterprise and assessing the enterprise’s likely business position and solvency after the capital injection and reorganisation; securing the support of financial institution creditors and communicating with them on a debt restructuring plan involving the extension of the term of long-term loans, continuation of short-term loans and control of financing costs; determining with the existing investors the conditions for transferring equity; re-establishment of the debtor enterprise’s governance structure and the means for establishing and realising internal controls; and assurance of external conditions, such as tax matters, support of the local government, etc.
On this basis, the strategic investor proposes an investment plan and directs the administrator in proposing a reorganisation plan – proposing a specific plan addressing subsequent operations, adjustment and discharge of claims, the reorganisation and supervision periods, corporate governance and realisation of internal control objectives – to secure passage by the creditors’meeting.