Century Park, a hospitality establishment, has been put under receivership and management of a tax advisory firm, as the financial troubles of its owner, Chinese investor Billy Cheung, continue to unfold. According to an official statement, Century Park is now under the receivership and management of PricewaterhouseCoopers Rwanda Limited (PwC), a professional services firm offering assurance, advisory, and tax services. Receivership refers to a legal process where a receiver is appointed to take control of the company's assets, typically by a creditor or a court, due to the company's inability to meet its financial obligations, such as mortgage payments. The receivership and transfer of Century Park's management follows its seizure of by BPR Bank, which handed it over to PwC due to Cheung’s mortgage issues. Century Park is a high-end real estate development located in the prime Nyarutarama area of Kigali, consisting of luxury villas, apartments, and an entertainment facility. Cheung is currently embroiled in a legal battle in Rwanda, where he is accused of evading creditors. The ongoing case reportedly involves debts totalling US$51.6 million. A statement by PwC published in media by Brian Ngunjiri, one of PwC’s partners, noted that PwC was appointed by the Registrar General as a Receiver for and Manager of the properties belonging to Century Park Hotel and Residences Limited “pursuant to the powers conferred on BPR Bank Rwanda PLC.” The statement added that the receivership is as a result of various mortgages as executed by the company and entered into between the company and the bank over the assets of the company. It is understood that he owes money to BPR Bank, and is one of the creditors that he was defaulting on paying, but in addition to that, there are reportedly criminal accusations against him regarding alleged irregularities regarding an unexplained removal of caveats on his assets held by BPR Bank Rwanda. PwC’s statement further stressed that the firm will take control of the management of the Century Park’s assets, and no other party is authorised to deal with the assets of the company other than the receiver and its authorised representatives. “Anyone who holds, receives, uses, attempts to buy, or sell assets of the company or otherwise deal with them without the prior written approval of the Receiver will be acting in contravention of the law and will be exposed to legal action,” it reads in part. “Century Park Hotel and Residences Limited will continue to operate its businesses under the management of the receiver. The receiver appeals to the company's stakeholders for their continued support and cooperation, it added. PwC promised that it will continue to appropriately engage and consult with the company's stakeholders in a bid to agree on the best way forward during the receivership period. Cheung was arrested on February 4 and remanded later that month by Kicukiro Primary Court, a decision he moved to appeal against. In April, Nyarugenge Intermediate Court upheld a 30-day remand for him, on charges which reportedly include money laundering and fraud. Though the details remain scanty, reports indicate that he is facing accusations from both Rwanda and Uganda. In Uganda, he allegedly defrauded more than 200 business people, obtaining US$23 million for a modern market project that was never completed before he fled to Rwanda. His defence team argued that the case against him is a civil debt dispute, not a criminal matter. They also claimed that Ugandan court rulings were based on manipulated documents and that accusations of money laundering lack merit.
