PwC also flagged alleged conflicts of interest between Bridging’s officers and its borrowers, which is a focus of the OSC’s continuing probe. The receiver went into detail about loans made to Gary Ng, a Winnipeg-based businessman who bought a 50-per-cent stake in Bridging Finance for $50-million in 2019.
Six months later after his purchase, an investigation revealed Mr. Ng had forged collateral documents and he wasn’t worth anywhere near what he’d said he was. This spelled trouble for Bridging because it had lent Mr. Ng and his companies $132-million.
Bridging’s owners – Jenny Coco and Rock-Anthony Coco, who
owned asphalt giant Coco Paving Inc., and Natasha Sharpe – bought back Mr. Ng’s stake for $5, which has already been documented by the OSC. However, in its latest report to the court, PwC said it is “not aware of any meaningful disclosure having been made to unitholders” regarding the conflict of interest and the issues with Mr. Ng’s allegedly false collateral.
PwC also discovered that an agreement between Bridging’s owners and Mr. Ng pertaining to buying back his stake may include a covenant that prevents Bridging from suing Mr. Ng and some of his related corporations.