District Court in Poznań Grants Third Injunction against Mariusz Świtalski to Secure Forteam Investments’ Claims

District Court in Poznań Grants Third Injunction against Mariusz Świtalski to Secure Forteam Investments’ Claims

WARSAW, Poland, August 5, 2020 — Forteam Investments Ltd., an investment company controlled by U.S. private equity firm Delta Capital Partners Management LLC (“Delta”), which is seeking over PLN 300 million from Mariusz Świtalski and companies he controls, has secured a third court injunction.

The District Court in Poznań granted the injunction against Druga-Sowiniec Capital sp. z o.o. S.K.A., a company controlled by Mariusz Świtalski, and Krzysztof Belcarz.

The injunction secured by Forteam concerns a claim that seeks to declare as invalid agreements to sell stakes in Czerwona Torebka S.A. (24,758,600 and 9,707,588 shares, respectively), executed in March 2020 between Świtalski FIZ and the entities facing this injunction.

Under the injunction, Forteam has secured another Czerwona Torebka shares. In total, by force of the first (granted in February 2020) and third injunction, 48.44% of the Czerwona Torebka shares have been secured. Currently, 35.5% of the Czerwona Torebka’s shares have been already seized by a bailiff, while the procedure is on-going for the remaining 12,94% of shares.

Christopher DeLise, CEO of Delta, said, “We will make full use of the latest injunction issued by the court that enables us to participate in the oversight of Czerwona Torebka. We have already begun such involvement by exercising our rights to safeguard the interests of the shareholders and to protect the company’s commercial interests and assets.This includes an extensive review of the price, trading volume, and history of Czerwona Torebka’s securities. We also intend to exercise our rights to meet with and hold fully accountable the Management Board and to obtain all essential information and detailed plans concerning the company’s future. We also intend to express our concerns regarding the way the company appears to be mismanaged for the benefit of certain parties rather than as required by law and consistent with the fiduciary duties of the Board

The transactions between Świtalski FIZ, Druga-Sowiniec Capital and Krzysztof Belcarz took place in March 2020 after the District Court in Poznań’s February 21, 2020 decision that granted Forteam an injunction against Mariusz Świtalski and companies from Sowiniec Group under his controls (with the exception of Druga-Sowiniec).

As a result of that ruling, Mariusz Świtalski’s assets are frozen until the case is concluded. These share sale transactions illustrate Mariusz Świtalski’s attempts to sell and conceal his assets to make it more difficult for Forteam to satisfy its claims.

This newest injunction is yet another positive court ruling for Forteam, following the court’s June 25, 2020 dismissal of an appeal lodged by Mariusz Świtalski on February 21, 2020. Moreover, Mariusz Świtalski previously failed in his attempt to exclude all judges working at Poznań-based courts from all cases between him and Forteam.

At the end of April 2020, the court, in connection with potential detriment being suffered by Forteam as a creditor, decided to secure Forteam’s claims on parts of the assets of Mariusz Światalski’s children: Mikołaj, Marcin, Mateusz (President of the Management Board at Czerwona Torebka S.A.) and Natasza (Proxy at Czerwona Torebka S.A.). The court’s decision concerns investment certificates in fund Świtalski FIZ, which Mariusz Świtalski had transferred to his children.

All three injunctions were obtained in anticipation of a conclusion in a civil proceeding against Mariusz Świtalski that relates to his breach of a guarantee agreement executed with Forteam Investments in 2015.

Reminder: On May 8, 2015, Forteam purchased a 100% stake in Małpka S.A. from Czerwona Torebka. Małpka was the owner of the Małpka Express chain. In settling the transaction, Forteam sold its stake (16.18%) in Czerwona Torebka. Upon signing the sale agreement, the parties were aware of Małpka’s difficult situation. The agreement, itself, noted that the parties realize that further considerable financing would be needed for the company to reach the break-even point.

Because of this, Mariusz Świtalski and Sowiniec Group also executed a Guarantee Agreement with Forteam, which provided Forteam with a guaranteed return on the Małpka investment if the Małpka Express store chain was later sold to a third party. Mariusz Świtalski submitted a written declaration that his personal assets were sufficient to perform the Guarantee Agreement.

When Forteam attempted to sell Małpka Express in 2018, it was unable to obtain consideration at or above the minimum sale price, despite engaging a respected independent investment bank to run a robust sales process. Mariusz Świtalski has not exercised his preemptive rights and did not buy Małpka for the guaranteed amount.

Accordingly, Forteam notified Świtalski on December 28, 2018, of his obligations to remit the monies owed to Forteam pursuant to the Guarantee Agreement. Notwithstanding, Świtalski and the companies have failed to pay any amounts due and owed to Forteam, which, in turn, necessitated the filing of the injunction and civil lawsuits. As a result of Mariusz Świtalski’s actions, Forteam was forced to take additional steps to secure part of his children’s property and other entities to which Świtalski transferred owned assets.

Krzysztof Belcarz has been affiliated with Mariusz Świtalski’s various businesses for years. In the course of his career, he has served as Development Director at Świtalski FIZ, Management Board Representative for Commercial Affairs in Czerwona Torebka and Expansion Partner at Świtalski & Synowie S.A.

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New North Litigation Capital Launches, Backed by £50 Million in Senior Secured Financing from Pollen Street Capital

By John Freund |

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Capital Law has a strong track record in commercial litigation, having closed over 400 claimant cases since 2001 with a 95% win rate. Drawing on its senior leadership and experienced disputes team, Capital Law launched New North to address the underserved small to mid-market segment of commercial litigation market. 

New North will be the only litigation financier in the UK owned and operated by practicing lawyers, bringing their day to day lived experience of handling mid-market litigation into pricing the risk and the funding investment decisions.

Christopher Nott, Founder and CEO of New North commented: “We are pleased to work with Pollen Street on this financing to launch New North Litigation Capital. The funding supports us to bridge a critical gap by funding claims that are often deemed too small by other players in the market. We are excited to work with the Pollen Street team as we create this new kind of litigation funding.”

Connor Marshall-Mckie, Investment Director at Pollen Street, commented:New North addresses an important gap in the litigation funding space, focusing on smaller mid-market commercial litigation. With the significant opportunity available and the deep experience of the leadership team from Capital Law we are excited to partner with the team to support their growth.”

About Pollen Street

Pollen Street is a fast-growing and high-performing private capital asset manager. Established in 2013, the firm has built deep capability across the real estate, financial and business services sectors aligned with mega-trends shaping the future of the industry. Pollen Street manages over €7bn AUM across private equity and credit strategies on behalf of investors including leading public and corporate pension funds, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and foundations, asset managers, banks, and family offices from around the world. Pollen Street has a team of over 95 professionals.

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By John Freund |

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A press release in PR Newswire reveals that the New York- and London-listed funder more than doubled revenue and profitability in the three months to 30 June 2025. CEO Christopher Bogart credited “very substantial levels of new business” for the uptick, noting that demand for non-recourse financing remains “as strong as we’ve ever seen.”

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By John Freund |

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The dinner will be accompanied by the inaugural Legal Finance Awards.  The awards are designed to recognize and honor excellence across the legal finance ecosystem. They will spotlight the achievements of funders, law firms, brokers, advisors, and other key contributors to the continued growth and innovation of the industry. Nominations for the awards are now open, with the nomination form available here

“The Gala Dinner is a chance for our members and guests to gather in person and celebrate the progress we've made over the year,” said Rupert Cunningham, Global Director of Growth and Membership Engagement at ILFA. “We are especially excited to launch the Legal Finance Awards, which will shine a light on the outstanding work and impact of professionals across our field.”

Tickets for the Gala are on sale now, with discounted pricing available for ILFA members.  More information can be found here.