The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas recently denied recognition of Geden Holdings, Ltd.’s Maltese insolvency proceeding as either a foreign main or nonmain proceeding under chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code. The bankruptcy court concluded that the foreign representative failed to establish that Malta, the location of Geden’s registered office, was Geden’s center of main interests (“COMI”), as of the petition date. The representative also failed to show that Geden had nontransitory economic activity in Malta (i.e., an “establishment” in Malta). The decision reinforces that a foreign representative cannot just rely on a presumption of COMI, particularly where a debtor’s COMI is in dispute, and must demonstrate material liquidation activity, beyond a formal appointment, to establish COMI in a letterbox jurisdiction.
To read the full article, please click here (page 66).
"Geden Past COMI Presumptions: Insufficient Liquidator Activity Fails to Establish Debtor's COMI in Letterbox Jurisdiction," by Michael B. Schaedle, Evan J. Zucker, and Jennifer K. Malow was published in the January 2026 edition of the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal.
