Investors aim for settlement in OW Bunker case

Private investors who lost money when the oil company OW Bunker collapsed in 2014 are looking to settle. According to ShippingWatch, this follows an OW Bunker-Investor association board meeting, which represents about 3,500 former shareholders with a collective loss of 260 million kroner. The group lawsuit against the company’s former management and owner, the private equity firm Altor, has been weakened by a decision to proceed without expert witnesses, reducing chances of success. The exact number of private investors eligible for the settlement is unclear. In February, ShippingWatch reported that 24 pension funds were prepared to settle for 665 million kroner, including costs, significantly less than the original claim. OW Bunker went bankrupt on November 7, 2014, after heavy losses in its subsidiary, Dynamic Oil Trading, in Singapore. The former head of Dynamic Oil Trading, Lars Møller, was sentenced to five years in prison for aggravated embezzlement in June 2019.