Princeton Alternative Income Fund's (PAIF) latest attempt to resolve its bankruptcy dispute by appointing an independent restructuring officer was rejected by Ranger Direct Lending last week.
The fund proposed hiring respected former United States Bankruptcy Judge Donald H. Steckroth as an independent officer to oversee the fund's restructuring to protect all its investors. The executives at Ranger had demanded the appointment of an independent officer earlier in the bankruptcy process only to reject it this week.
"We are disappointed Ranger rejected the proposal to appoint Judge Steckroth, whose experience and reputation make him imminently qualified to oversee PAIF's restructuring," said PAIF President Jeff Davner. "Every step of the way we have been striving to protect all investors in the fund. And at each step, Ranger's leadership has rejected reasonable measures to resolve the dispute. Ranger seems committed to continuing its legal campaign to exert and obtain ownership and management over assets Ranger may have incorrectly told its investors it controls."
An independent investigation of Ranger's claims of self-dealing against PAIF was conducted by Bernard Katz of BAK Advisors Inc. at the request of PAIF's Board of Directors. In its extensive September 2018 report, BAK concluded that Ranger's claims were not supported.
Additionally, in August 2018, after eight months of hearings and testimony, a JAMS Arbitration panel entered a partial final award in the redemption arbitration matter between Ranger and PAIF that rejected Ranger's claims of fraud and denied them attorney fees.
"Appointing Judge Steckroth and providing him the independence needed to oversee the fund's restructuring is a fair solution for all of our investors. It's unfortunate that Ranger's leadership rejected it," said Davner. "We will continue to work to resolve this dispute in a way that is fair and equitable to everyone."
Princeton Alternative Income Fund provides capital for businesses that make consumer loans in the non-prime market.