Creditors left in limbo as Lehman Brothers Japan scrambles for sponsor

TOKYO, Sept. 19 Kyodo - Lehman Brothers Japan Inc. held a closed meeting for creditors Friday but failed to reassure them that a sponsor can be found to keep the company intact after the recent collapse of its U.S. parent firm, participants said.

The Japanese unit of U.S. securities house Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. filed
for bankruptcy protection earlier this week with liabilities totaling 3.43
trillion yen.
''We intend to do our utmost to rebuild our business by promptly finding a
sponsor who can evaluate the value of our operations highly,'' Lehman Brothers
Japan President Akio Katsuragi told reporters after the meeting.
Katsuragi apologized before a group of about 100 creditors mostly representing
financial institutions, but refrained from providing specifics on the prospect
of its rehabilitation plan, according to the participants.
''We could not hear what we wanted to hear the most,'' said one female
participant from a foreign bank, adding there was no explanation of the current
state of the company's balance sheet.
After British bank Barclays Plc agreed to acquire Lehman Brothers' key North
American operations, attention has focused on which foreign or Japanese
financial institutions will come forward to buy the Japanese subsidiary.
Lehman Brothers Japan intends to submit a rehabilitation plan between December
and January.
==Kyodo