Marconi will re-list on 19 May

The High Court in the UK has approved the financial restructuring of telecom equipment firm Marconi, paving the way for its recovery.

The company won its creditors' support for the �4bn ($6.4bn) restructuring last month.

As a result, Marconi plc will re-list on the London Stock Exchange on 19 May as the renamed Marconi Corporation.

Under the deal, Marconi will swap �4bn of debt owed to its bank and bondholders for 99.5% of its shares.

This will leave its shareholders with the remaining 0.5%, or practically no ownership of the company.

"In the circumstances, and embodying some minor amendments, I am ready to sanction the Corporation scheme and the Plc scheme," the High Court's Justice Lyndsay said.

Shares in Marconi were down 7.7% at 1.2 pence on the news.

Shrinking sales

Last week, the company reported another fall in its sales and said it faced a shrinking market.

Group sales for the January to March period fell to �430m from �466m in the previous quarter.

Marconi reached the agreement with its banks and bondholders to repay its �4bn debt last December.

The deal was thought to have saved the company from going bust.