The company behind the Mailbox and The Cube has plunged into administration.
Birmingham Development Company (BDC), run by well known city entrepreneur Alan Chatham, called in administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) after failing to reach a financing agreement with Lloyds Banking Group.
The move, which also sees BuildAbility (BAL) put into administration, raises major doubts over the iconic development of The Cube and plans for the former Birmingham Post and Mail building on Colmore Circus.
The Directors of Birmingham Development Company (BDC) and BuildAbility said, in a statement: “We are bitterly disappointed that we have been unable to reach agreement with Lloyds Bank to enable the development of The Cube to be funded to completion, particularly when the project is so close to completion.
“As a consequence, having taken legal advice, the directors considered they had no alternative other than to request that Lloyds Bank appoint administrators – which has now been done.
“It is a sad day for The Cube, an ambitious project for Birmingham, into which we have put five years of our lives, but like many development projects across the UK, it has succumbed to the pressures of the global economic downturn, which followed the credit crunch.
“Over the last five years, we have been absolutely committed to protect and deliver The Cube in a professional and honourable manner and we would like to thank our colleagues at BDC and BAL and all others working on the scheme for their hard work, support and loyalty.”
Mark Batten, Matthew Hammond and Peter Spratt, of PricewaterhouseCoopers, were appointed joint administrators of Birmingham Development Company Limited (“BDC”) and Build Ability.
They said, in a statement: “BDC’s principal asset is The Cube development, an iconic mixed-use building designed by Make Architects including residential, office, retail, restaurant and hotel space, in Birmingham.
“The Joint Administrators have, since their appointment, been holding initial discussions with the principal stakeholders in the project with a view to completing the development.
“The joint administrators do not intend to market the development in its current state.”
