HSBC has launched bankruptcy petitions against Aidan and Howard Barclay, senior members of the Barclay family, as the bank seeks repayment for debts linked to the family’s collapsed logistics business, Times UK reported. The cases were filed in the High Court in December, with the bank having recovered only about £1.1 million of a £143.5 million secured loan from the administration of Logistics Group.
Logistics Group, which owned the Barclay family’s brands Yodel and ArrowXL, entered administration in March 2024 after HSBC called in the debt and the business was unable to repay. The collapse adds to a string of high-profile asset losses by the Barclay family in recent years, including the Telegraph newspaper group and The Very Group retail business.
According to Times UK, Aidan, 69, and Howard Barclay, 66, were directors of Logistics Group at the time of its insolvency. They are the eldest sons of the late Sir David Barclay, who alongside his twin brother, Sir Frederick, built the family empire through debt-fuelled acquisitions. Filings for their property business, Trenport, list Aidan Barclay’s primary residence as Monaco.
HSBC, a secured creditor of Logistics Group, received a dividend of approximately £1.1 million in August—equivalent to just 0.78p in the pound of the total debt—according to administrators at Teneo, whose report was filed at Companies House in October. The administrators noted that any future recoveries would depend on an earnout agreed as part of the sale of subsidiary companies.
ArrowXL was sold in June to France’s Jacky Perrenot Group for an initial £2.2 million, far below the £57.5 million estimated value held by the directors. Yodel was sold off earlier, in February 2024, shortly before administration proceedings began.
The Barclay family also relinquished control of The Very Group in November to U.S. private equity firm Carlyle, while International Media Investments, a UAE-owned company, last month appointed Interpath to manage the sale of Trenport’s property assets following a failed takeover of The Telegraph. The £500 million sale of the Telegraph to U.S. private equity group RedBird collapsed in November due to regulatory hurdles, leaving ownership in prolonged uncertainty after Lloyds Banking Group seized the title from the Barclays in 2023 over outstanding debts.
HSBC declined to comment on the bankruptcy filings. Aidan and Howard Barclay were approached for comment, Times UK reported.
