The Legal Execution Department (LED) will distribute 11 million baht drawn from the seized assets of the debt-ridden California Wow Xperience Fitness Club (Cawow) to repay its creditors for the first time on Monday.
LED director-general Ruenwadee Suwanmongkol said the sum was drawn from the club's assets, bank accounts and cash placed with the Central Bankruptcy Court, worth 13 million baht in total. The assets include exercise equipment that has been auctioned off.
So far, 320 people have registered online to receive the debt repayment. Sixty have been verified and designated to receive money back. The department has seized assets from Cawow several times. It will return the money to creditors in rounds.
The debt repayment came after the Central Bankruptcy Court ordered the seizure of the company's assets on May 2, 2013 following a bankruptcy lawsuit lodged by Bangkok Bank, one of its creditors.
A total of 1,403 creditors have sought to receive debt repayment of 511 million baht from the firm.
Cawow ran its fitness business in Thailand between 2000 and 2013. The company quickly drew a large number of customers with sales promotions and lifetime membership privileges. However, the club later plunged into the red, causing it to close down some of its branches. This upset its customers, especially those who paid for lifetime memberships.
In 2012, the Foundation for Consumers reported that almost half the complaints it received that year came from consumers who claimed they were cheated by Cawow. Many said the club barely informed members of closed outlets.
The shutdowns reportedly were part of the club's business rehabilitation plan, which started in May of the same year. However members of the closed outlets said Cawow did not refund their money.
The foundation estimates that over 30 million baht was lost due to the club's failure to refund membership fees.
In January last year, the Anti-Money Laundering Office decided to freeze 88 million baht in assets of the firm.