Provisional liquidator appointed to takeaway app company

The High Court has appointed a provisional liquidator to the company behind an app that allows users to order and pick up meals from restaurants and cafes all over the State.

The Bamboo app, which launched in 2018, was designed to allow people to get meals from over 100 restaurants, in Galway, Dublin and Cork, located near their place of work.

The court heard the company behind the app, Mahalo Ltd, had been seeking fresh investment to develop its business, which generated revenue by charging a small commission on orders placed.

Its financial situation significantly dipped after 95 per cent of the restaurants which it had worked with closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Most of the app’s users also either started working remotely or ceased working at all.

The court heard a rival operator was interested in acquiring the company’s assets for €37,000 and hiring its six employees.

Having received legal advice, the directors sought to have Mahalo wound up and a provisional liquidator appointed.

The liquidator, it was claimed, would be of benefit of the company’s creditors and ensure its assets could be sold for the best possible price and that Mahalo’s server is maintained.

Main creditors

The company's main creditors are an investor in the firm, Joseph Elias, who is owed €460,000, and the Revenue, owed €30,000.

The firm's directors are Luke Mackey, Hyde Road, Dalkey, Co Dublin, and Stefanos Focas, Rathmichael, Co Dublin.

On Thursday, Mr Justice Senan Allen appointed insolvency practitioner Paul McCann of Grant Thornton as provisional liquidator to Mahalo.

The judge said he was satisfied the firm is insolvent but he expressed concern the winding up process was being done through a court-appointed liquidator, as opposed to a voluntary liquidation.

The judge said his concerns were because a rival firm had made an offer to acquire Mahalo’s assets for €37,000. Mahalo’s debts were well in excess of that offer, and that was before one took the costs of a High Court liquidation into account, he said.

Despite his reservations, the judge said he was prepared to appoint a provisional liquidator and adjourned the matter to a date later this month.