Mark Christiansen

Prior to joining Ankura, Mark was a director at a global restructuring firm in London. Previously he worked for a corporate advisory firm in Sydney, Australia, and he started his career with eight years at large chartered accounting firms in Australia and New Zealand.

Examples of his professional experience include:

• Advised a PE owned non-food retailer on liquidity forecasting and management, allowing it to operate through funding pinch points. Instigated working capital improvements to release additional liquidity. Supported the Chief Financial Officer and finance team to prepare for and negotiate a series of debt restructurings.
• Assisted the European operations of Kodak while their U.S. parent was in Chapter 11. Key issues addressed included maintaining liquidity for the global treasury entity and resolution of a significant unfunded UK pension obligation. Assessed forecast viability of the European operations and prepared contingency plans for each entity within Europe.
• Implemented cash flow forecasting and cash management procedures at a Russian Hypermarket chain to fund an aggressive expansion plan through internally generated cash. Increased focus within the organisation on cash as an asset.
• Advised LyondellBasell while its U.S. operations were in Chapter 11. Instigated cash management techniques including short term cash maintenance through a liquidity squeeze, medium term liquidity forecasting, and reporting to management and debt holders.
• Advised Dana Europe while its U.S. parent was in Chapter 11. Sized funding needs for European operations in preparation for entry to Chapter 11, negotiated and completed a multi-currency cross-border receivables based ABL facility of €170M, formed a European Treasury function in Zurich, and instigated liquidity management procedures.
• Advised the European subsidiary of a U.S. multinational automotive manufacturer in Chapter 11. Maintained liquidity while the subsidiary was divested. This required detailed cash and purchase restrictions, balanced against the operational needs to continue product development to maintain the commercial viability of the subsidiary.
• Advised the Senior Lenders considering a refinancing proposal for a Greek product tanker shipping company. Refinancing was not viable, so he assisted the Lenders through the process as the company filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S.
• Prepared a privately held containership company for a Chapter 11 filing.
• Developed a five year integrated P&L, balance sheet and cash flow model for a Middle Eastern construction group.
• Performed a diagnostic review of the performance and structure of the finance division of a UK life assurance company.
• Advised a UK retail group which had a significant Tier 1 capital shortfall in the balance sheet of the group banking subsidiary. Responsible for governance, pensions, tax, and data room workstreams. Engaged with the Pensions Regulator to gain approval for a plan to recapitalise the bank.
• Advised a privately owned telecoms company in breach of its debt covenants and unable to meet contracted principal repayments. Instigated cash management procedures via cash flow forecasting and actual reporting procedures. Improved available cash through focused rationing and payment approval restrictions, providing time to evaluate and implement restructuring options. Improved accuracy and transparency of cash reporting to management and debt holders, rebuilding trust in the integrity of the information reported.
• Advised a private equity owned UK waste management business at risk of breaching debt covenants. Actively managed cash, avoiding breach through a range of cash initiatives. Developed a five year plan for use in negotiations with the debt holders.