#6 Quote:

Perhaps that "Somebody" should be plural?

Yes, most likely. I suspect a connection between the Amiga Documents author(s) and Michele Battilana who likely is aware of the situation. Michele would want to contact the "court-appointed insolvency curator" ASAP which has also likely already been done. The result could be a change in Hyperion ownership. Amiga Corporation has added incentive to make a deal and bid high for Hyperion IP to end the lawsuits and gain valuable AmigaOS enhancements. Any bids from A-Eon or a Ben entity would be at risk of losing what they bought to Amiga Corporation and may not even be possible because of licensing agreements. I wouldn't be surprised if Amiga Corporation emerges from this as the one Amiga IP source allowing the Amiga to move forward again (Hyperion programmer contracts would likely be a legal mess though). The probable Ben Hermans response in all this is certainly strange.

https://www.amiga-news.de/de/news/comments/thread/AN-2024-03-00105-DE.html?frm_start=7 Quote:

HermansHermans dubidubidu (29-Mär-2024, 21:22) Der externe Buchhalter hätte den neuen Jahresbericht aufgrund des "Neuen Gesetz vom Verbot von Einweg-E-Zigaretten" nur fristgerecht fertigstellen können, aber durch eine minimale Besetzung ohne Drogen. die von zu Hause arbeiten sei dies natürlich nicht möglich gewesen.

Google English translation...

Quote:

HermansHermans dubidubidu (Mar 29, 2024, 9:22 p.m.) The external accountant could only have completed the new annual report on time due to the "new law banning disposable e-cigarettes", but with a minimal staff without drugs. Of course, this was not possible for those working from home.

Another minor accounting problem according to Ben downplaying the situation or has he finally been nuked from orbit?

@thread

Sometimes with all the personal grievances expressed in threads with denials of what constitutes truth, I can get confused by what people are trying to convey.

That being said, and having full understanding that my words regarding what is official may not be perceived so by all, I feel it necessary to have "Ben" speak as to what is official.

Quote:

The only official source of this kind of information is from the Belgian government which shows Hyperion Entertainment's status as being "normal" and this has been the case for years. http://kbopub.economie.fgov.be/kbopub/zoeknummerform.html?lang=en&nummer=0466+380+552&actionLu=Zoek

Source

Although the link given is to Hyperion Entertainment, this also means that the links to the same site for both the former Ben Hermans B.V. and the more current Ben Hermans from March 11, 2024 are also official since they originate from the identical source.

It obviously does not speak to "what this means", but it does back up certain posts and statements being made.

Hope this helps,

#6

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@matthey

Quote:

minor accounting problem

Hence why I mentioned "Bofidi", where the very same accountant now works.
It is no secret. Her name appears in the court documentation.

#6

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@matthey

Sounds nice and for sure worked like a charm when AminoClownsIncorporated did their shell games

Unless somebody takes money into hands and really goes after this legal mess, nothing will change.

New Ben will own everything old Ben owned just not any debts, unfilled documents that would have revealed something (whatever it is the whole nonsense is a pretty clear indicator that there is something) will never be followed up, everything will go back to normal for a few years until the same s##t cooks up again.

Man is it cool to be blue

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#6 Quote:

Although the link given is to Hyperion Entertainment, this also means that the links to the same site for both the former Ben Hermans B.V. and the more current Ben Hermans from March 11, 2024 are also official since they originate from the identical source. It obviously does not speak to "what this means", but it does back up certain posts and statements being made.

There is information which is likely reliable like the following.

1. Ben Hermans transferred 97% of Hyperion Entertainment stock to the original Ben Hermans BV soon after restructuring in 2019
2. original Ben Hermans BV last financial statements was from 2021
3. a new Ben Hermans BV was founded on March 11, 2024
4. original Ben Hermans BV was declared insolvent on March 19, 2024
5. Ben Hermans makes comment downplaying the declared insolvency as another minor accounting error (https://www.amiga-news.de/de/news/comments/thread/AN-2024-03-00105-DE.html?frm_start=7)

Then there is the less reliable interpretation of why these moves were made.

1. Ben Hermans transferred 97% of Hyperion Entertainment stock to the original Ben Hermans BV soon after restructuring in 2019
Interpretation: shell games to obfuscate and limit liability

2. original Ben Hermans BV last financial statements was from 2021
Interpretation: obfuscate financial position to hide financial health

3. a new Ben Hermans BV was founded on March 11, 2024
Interpretation: shell games to retain valuable assets in new BV while eliminating debt in old BV

4. original Ben Hermans BV was declared insolvent on March 19, 2024
Interpretation: original plan meant to go under the radar but maybe caught?

5. Ben Hermans makes comment downplaying the declared insolvency as another minor accounting error (https://www.amiga-news.de/de/news/comments/thread/AN-2024-03-00105-DE.html?frm_start=7)
Interpretation: downplay the insolvency to obfuscate for plan above

I'm connecting the dots based on Ben's modus operandi. Does that make me biased or a good investigator?

#6 Quote:

Hence why I mentioned "Bofidi", where the very same accountant now works. It is no secret. Her name appears in the court documentation.

Amiga Corporation should be contacting the Bofidi accountant and any "court-appointed insolvency curator" to review the truth rather than relying on any Hyperion or Ben official statements.

@matthey

Quote:

obfuscate financial position to hide financial health

For what it's worth company.be does give some indication:

https://www.companyweb.be/nl/0466380552/hyperion-entertainment

I don't need to explain the "red" or the word "crisis" do I?

#6

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Bones has his own opinion about this news.


https://youtu.be/3at_Ev2kOoI?si=ykUBsBSit2XdbfUy

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Quote:

matthey wrote: 3. a new Ben Hermans BV was founded on March 11, 2024 4. original Ben Hermans BV was declared insolvent on March 19, 2024

So in between 3 and 4 did Hermans manage to transfer his ownership in Hyperion from old BH to new BH?

Likely he is off in the background "making up" the necessary documents to do so.

Worst case: he weasels out of it again, is floated by his buddy and all the fanboys that keep giving money to Hyperion for the theft of 3.1 leading to 3.1.4/3.2

Best case: he's gone for good, Mike gets back his full ownership of changes made to 3.1 and the world is a better place.

I wouldn't worry about it. Everything is fine, it is just a slight misunderstanding caused by some changes in the availability of e-cigarettes.

This kind of thing happens all the time and is normal. All sorts of companies are affected by things like this.

@V8

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-USGj4z33Wmo/V60spS-xIKI/AAAAAAAAAjw/eLqOSeuKzAgwTGJ_aBTtaZeAe6ytJcb6gCLcB/s1600/BaghdadBob.jpg

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@thread

For those who have already seen this statement:

"Following bankruptcy proceedings against Ben Hermans BV, Belgian court appoints provisional administrator for Hyperion Entertainment CVBA as well"

Yes, it is true. More to follow including supporting documentation links.

#6

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@thread

Amiganews.de article (German)

Amiganews.de article (English)

#6

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matthey Quote:

3. a new Ben Hermans BV was founded on March 11, 2024 4. original Ben Hermans BV was declared insolvent on March 19, 2024

dalek Quote:

So in between 3 and 4 did Hermans manage to transfer his ownership in Hyperion from old BH to new BH?

Good question and it looks like we know the answer now. If the Hyperion Entertainment stock was successfully transferred to the new Ben Hermans BV, it may have been able to avoid bankruptcy with the old Ben Hermans BV. I can't think of any legitimate reason to create a new Ben Hermans BV so it is likely that Ben Hermans was caught before the stock could be transferred to the new shell company or the stock transfer was invalidated for being illegal. It looks like Ben pushed his luck and was caught performing shenanigans. This looks like game over for Ben's involvement with the Amiga. I wonder if he has been arrested yet. Is it possible to check arrest records in Belgium?

dalek Quote:

Likely he is off in the background "making up" the necessary documents to do so. Worst case: he weasels out of it again, is floated by his buddy and all the fanboys that keep giving money to Hyperion for the theft of 3.1 leading to 3.1.4/3.2 Best case: he's gone for good, Mike gets back his full ownership of changes made to 3.1 and the world is a better place.

I expect Mike will find the bankruptcy administrator much easier to negotiate with than Ben. I'm leaning toward your best case scenario as the more likely scenario.

@#6
Not much new or unexpected but we are slowly getting a clearer picture. Thanks.

Last edited by matthey on 08-Apr-2024 at 10:51 PM.

@matthey

Just a side note about basing any conclusions on dates. Example:

I know when trademark responses are required. More often than not, they do not appear in the filings by that date. Sometimes people suspect back dating, when it's simply that a "recorded" date is going to follow the date the document is actually received.

In the above case perhaps an "initiated" state of affairs does not match with a "recorded" state of affairs. Just a thought.

#6

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@matthey

I do not know belgium laws. In germany you would get in serious legal trouble if you are bankrupt and transfer values to other entities. For that you could come to prison. We will see what will be reported next week and where the amigaos rights are now. At least amigaos 3.X still had some value.

@matthey

Quote:

This looks like game over for Ben's involvement with the Amiga.

That is very optimistic of you.
This is not the first time Ben have had to dance with bancrupcy court or had had to play a game of hide-the-assets.
He will be just fine and he will remain in full control of Hyperion and its assets.

Now in particular when Hyperion has a product with a market that generates revenue that he can pocket, and where developers are happily working for free. I am talking about OS3.2. There is no way he will stumble and let go of this cash cow.

He will be just fine. So will Hyperion be. And all the revenue from OS3.2 will continue to go straight into his pocket.


Here is what will happen with Hyperion. The received will try to sell Hyperion to settle the debt of the parent company. However no one will offer to buy Hyperion because it has suddenly been discovered it is under enormous amount of debt, in the form of unpaid lawyer-fees to Ben himself. He is by far far far the biggest creditor, on paper, according to recently discovered documents that show all the millions of dollars in claims he has to Hyperion. These debts were probably "discovered" sometime around March 11 or so.
Eventually the receiver will finally sell Hyperion for ONE dollar to Ben himself and everything will go back to normal again.

Last edited by V8 on 09-Apr-2024 at 03:32 AM.
Last edited by V8 on 09-Apr-2024 at 03:32 AM.

@thread

Granted there are less posters than years ago, so perhaps interest in the topic is virtually nonexistent.

Regardless, for all the speculation as to "meaning", I thought the following link might be informative.

bankruptcy in Belgium

#6

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V8 Quote:

That is very optimistic of you. This is not the first time Ben have had to dance with bancrupcy court or had had to play a game of hide-the-assets. He will be just fine and he will remain in full control of Hyperion and its assets. Now in particular when Hyperion has a product with a market that generates revenue that he can pocket, and where developers are happily working for free. I am talking about OS3.2. There is no way he will stumble and let go of this cash cow. He will be just fine. So will Hyperion be. And all the revenue from OS3.2 will continue to go straight into his pocket.

Ben quickly came up with the money to pay the debts that forced Hyperion into bankruptcy the first time. Everyone was financially satisfied and Ben could claim there was a mistake. The money may have come from a Trevor funded account, perhaps without permission at first, but that was worked out to save Hyperion.

V8 Quote:

Here is what will happen with Hyperion. The received will try to sell Hyperion to settle the debt of the parent company. However no one will offer to buy Hyperion because it has suddenly been discovered it is under enormous amount of debt, in the form of unpaid lawyer-fees to Ben himself. He is by far far far the biggest creditor, on paper, according to recently discovered documents that show all the millions of dollars in claims he has to Hyperion. These debts were probably "discovered" sometime around March 11 or so. Eventually the receiver will finally sell Hyperion for ONE dollar to Ben himself and everything will go back to normal again.

If Hyperion is bankrupt too as recently claimed, the bankruptcy manager should try to sell assets, part of the business or the whole business to raise as much money as possible to pay as much debt as possible. Proceeds would typically be distributed based on priority like secured debt, then unsecured debt, then preferred shareholders, then common shareholders. Ben personally, or through a business, buying Hyperion for $1 would not do much to pay the debts although it may be possible if debt was included. Hyperion's assets have much more value than $1 but they may be tangled with obligations and liabilities that makes them difficult to separate. I expect Amiga Corporation would be willing to pay at least as much as they plan on spending on lawsuits against Hyperion to acquire Hyperion assets and make Hyperion disappear. It appears that Ben stole from Trevor to avoid Hyperion bankruptcy the first time and went through a divorce so I doubt he has deep pockets without Trevor financing. Trevor could financially back Ben again for a new round of shenanigans and perhaps a bidding war against Amiga Corporation for Hyperion assets but Amiga Corporation owns the Amiga IP that Hyperion AmigaOS related IP is based on making such a move very risky. Trevor (and A-Eon) may be out of the Amiga market too if he chooses allies poorly here. There are still many unknown factors including Belgium bankruptcy law. However, it looks to me like Amiga Corporation is in a good position to take advantage of the situation while Ben is limited with the bankruptcy managers in charge and scrutinizing his shenanigans. I know it is hard for Amiga users to believe that such a persistent Ben would finally fall but actions and risky gambles eventually have consequences.

@#6
Yes, understanding of Belgium bankruptcy law is important here.

Last edited by matthey on 09-Apr-2024 at 05:30 PM.

@matthey

And just one real world example concerning "time".

Quote:

Hyperion Entertainment Cvba in Sint-Agatha-Berchem (Brussel) was declared bankrupt by the court in Brussel on 27-01-2015

and the eventual announcement:

Quote:

Brussel, April 12, 2015 Contrary to some news items posted on certain websites, Hyperion Entertainment CVBA is not in a state of bankruptcy. Due to an unfortunate set of cirucmstances, the company was temporally listed as "bankrupt" despite the fact that the conditions for bankruptcy were never met and that in the eyes of the law, the company was never bankrupt.

Again, "declared" might not be when a process was initiated. And the announcement does not indicate an actual date of resolution.

But we -can- say that the prior instance took some time to reach resolution. I am not indicating someone -is- trying to resolve the current instance. This is simply another example concerning using dates to illustrate facts.

Added clarity on why I mention this: Someone is already posting about due dates that might not have any semblance to reality.

#6

Last edited by number6 on 09-Apr-2024 at 06:30 PM.

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@matthey

Another interesting thing you might appreciate:

The literal translation of "bewindvoerder" is indeed "receiver" while the entire phrase:
"Aangewezen voorlopig bewindvoerder:" translates as "Designated provisional administrator"

Please note that native Dutch have confirmed "receiver" for what it's worth.

Here's another article about that job description:
Global Restructuring & Insolvency Guide
Belgium

Added: clarity on why I mention this. If you read both German and English articles you'll see that the same article does not read the same due to differences in translation techniques. Hence why the "receiver" term was best confirmed with natives.

#6

Last edited by number6 on 09-Apr-2024 at 07:21 PM.

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