Agency Group's trading halt lifted

Real estate firm The Agency Group has had its trading halt lifted, just three weeks after Magnolia Group appointed accounting firm BDO as voluntary administrators over a $385,000 debt.

In a statement released this afternoon, The Agency Group’s board confirmed that it had satisfied the ASX requirements after filing a formal submission and that the trading suspension imposed on the company’s securities would be lifted.

The company also attempted to nullify speculation regarding its solvency, presenting an update on its financial position which indicated that it had a positive operating cash flow of $1.5 million and a combined group revenue of $29 million.

The figure represented a 15 per cent increase on the same time last year.

The Agency Group also stated that the company had a strong sales pipeline for the December quarter, with more than 1,200 listings.

Magnolia Group, which holds a 16.65 per cent stake in the company, appointed administrators on January 19, saying it had lost confidence in the company.

But The Agency Group took its fight to stop the administration to the Federal Court, filing an interlocutory injunction to prevent administrators from taking action while the two parties resolved a debt dispute, insisting that it was solvent.

Lawyer Anthony Papamatheos, acting on behalf of The Agency managing director Paul Clement Niardone, filed a suggested list of orders stating that it would pay $390,000 into the court by January 22.

Justice Craig Colvin granted the injunction and moved to adjourn the matter to a case management hearing, with the administrators agreeing to stand aside to allow the contractual dispute to be dealt with.

The final hearing has been scheduled for March 4.