GDB faces potential delay in debt recovery as 8 Conlay developer faces judicial management bid

KUALA LUMPUR (June 23): Construction firm GDB Holdings Bhd (KL:GDB) may face further delays in recovering more than RM140 million in court-awarded claims after a creditor filed an application to place 8 Conlay project developer Damai City Sdn Bhd (DCSB) under judicial management.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia on Monday, GDB said its wholly owned subsidiary, Grand Dynamic Builders Sdn Bhd (GDBSB), was informed that a creditor of DCSB, Sharifuddin Abdul Wahab, had filed the application on June 16 under several provisions of the Companies Act 2016.

The application seeks to place DCSB under judicial management for six months, a court-supervised corporate rescue mechanism designed to rehabilitate financially distressed companies and provide a better outcome for creditors than liquidation.

If approved by the court, legal proceedings, enforcement actions and other recovery processes against DCSB would generally be suspended during the judicial management period unless consent is obtained from the judicial manager and leave is granted by the court.

The development comes as GDB continues its efforts to recover substantial outstanding debts from DCSB and its parent company, KSK Land Sdn Bhd (KSKL), arising from construction works carried out for the high-profile 8 Conlay development in Kuala Lumpur.

In April 2025 and November 2025, the High Court dismissed DCSB's attempts to stay or set aside two adjudication awards obtained under the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication Act 2012 (CIPAA).

The decisions enabled GDB to enforce the awards as court judgments amounting to approximately RM59.2 million and RM82.7 million respectively, bringing the total value of enforceable claims against DCSB to about RM141.9 million.

Separately, the group's broader lawsuit against DCSB remains ongoing.

GDB also achieved a major breakthrough in February 2026 when it obtained a High Court judgment of RM102.8 million against KSKL for breaching a corporate guarantee provided in favour of GDBSB. The judgment stemmed from a long-running dispute over payment delays under a RM1.25 billion construction contract for the 8 Conlay project, which led to work suspensions, contract termination and multiple legal proceedings.

However, the recovery process remains uncertain. KSKL is currently under liquidation and has appealed against the High Court judgment. The developer is also seeking court approval for a debt restructuring plan and a temporary moratorium on certain legal actions.

GDB said it is consulting its solicitors on the appropriate course of action in response to the judicial management application.

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