Administrators for collapsed Australian housing developer Bathla Group have found enough funds to pay staff wages accrued since 25 August, meeting a critical deadline, though longer-term funding to keep the company afloat remains unsecured. Insolvency firm Teneo, appointed administrator in late August, has been trying to raise $20million in short-term financing for the group, which owes a reported $3.3billion and is one of Sydney's largest residential developers. The partial wage payment offers only temporary relief, with some staff still owed weeks of unpaid wages, and the situation continues to threaten thousands of homebuyers, contractors and jobs.

Administrator Stephen Longley described the situation as "complex" and said the wage payment was merely the first hurdle, with any short-term funding secured likely to provide only a few weeks' breathing space. The next key date is Friday's first formal creditors meeting. Bathla has 45 projects under construction and a pipeline of 20,000 apartments and 7,000 dwellings, mostly in Sydney's north-west, contributing significantly to the NSW government's housing targets; the state government has declined to bail the firm out, and some lenders have already appointed receivers over certain sites. Founder Bhart Bhushan attributed the collapse to federal tax changes and weakening buyer confidence.