Paddy McKillen jnr, with debts of €27.7m, applies for personal insolvency arrangement

The High Court has granted businessman Paddy McKillen jnr a protection certificate which will protect him from his creditors for 70 days.Barrister Keith Farry, appearing for personal insolvency practitioner Eugene McDarby, successfully applied for a protective certificate for the businessman, co-founder of the Press Up hospitality group.Farry told the court McKillen jnr was “firmly insolvent” and had liabilities of €27.7 million. He has just €270 in his bank account, Farry said.McKillen jnr, who was not in court, owes €2.9 million to his wife Edel McKillen and €1.8 million to his mother Maura McKillen, the court heard.READ MOREThe High Court last month rejected McKillen jnr’s bid to set aside a bankruptcy summons over an alleged €2.1 million debt, but adjourned the case for six months.In a judgment on August 13th, Judge Liam Kennedy dismissed McKillen jnr’s arguments to strike down lender Herbert Street Finance’s summons, finding that he had not established that the summons was an abuse of process, and was brought for “an ulterior motive”.A number of Press Up group restaurants and venues recorded six-figure losses in the year before London-based lender Cheyne Capital took over the group from McKillen jnr and his business partner Matt Ryan.Cheyne Capital, a long-standing finance partner of Press Up, which has since rebranded the chain as Eclective, took control of the hospitality group as part of a debt-for-equity swap in September 2024.Press Up had set up many hospitality businesses in Dublin, including the Stella Cinema, a chain of Wowburger restaurants and several cocktail bars.-This is a breaking story and will be updated.