Explore trusted debt relief & financial recovery solutions tailored for Canadians — from restructuring options to credit rebuilding and ongoing support. 4 Pillars’ corporate restructuring services provide an integrated approach to assisting Canadian businesses and entrepreneurs in financial crisis – combining financial and legal expertise for practical, cost-effective solutions.
Years helping Canadian businesses
Working for you – never the creditors
Offices across Canada to serve you better
4 Pillars is one Canada’s national debt restructuring firms, our roots are in financial restructuring, but our skill sets extend to all areas of business success.
We provide Canadian business owners and entrepreneurs with an unbiased assessment of their business situation, advise them on the most effective options to meet their long-term goals, and review any future impact on directors and owners from potential liabilities.
From stabilizing a business in crisis to strategic planning for long-term success — we provide the full spectrum of support Canadian entrepreneurs need.
Our proven three-step process is tailored to your unique circumstances and built around your goals — not the creditors’.
Complete the online assessment to understand all your options and the key practical and legal aspects you need to know. There are almost always more options than you think.
We create a detailed plan to deal with critical issues immediately and prepare a plan of action to meet the goals of the business owner(s). Stop creditor calls and secure breathing room.
Follow a step-by-step plan on your own, or engage our team to implement the strategy by your side. We hold you accountable and support you through to stability.
Small to medium-sized businesses in financial distress face a unique set of immediate challenges. Our approach is to immediately stabilize the situation and develop effective plans for short-term survival and long-term success.
Negotiate directly with each creditor, supplier, and CRA. The result can be a one-time settlement of delinquent debt, modification of secured lending agreements, or a new payment arrangement.
This approach avoids formal proceedings and is often the fastest, most cost-effective path to resolution.
Available to corporations owing less than $5M. The Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act allows financially troubled corporations to restructure payment terms with creditors while staying operational.
This provides protection from creditors under the BIA during the restructuring process.
The Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act is available to larger corporations with amounts owing to creditors of more than $5 million.
The CCAA also allows a company to address its shareholders in addition to its creditors — providing a comprehensive restructuring framework.
One of the main reasons businesses fail is poor management decision-making. We bring years of hands-on experience to support you through advisory roles, coaching, and on-the-ground management expertise.
Re-affirm or develop Vision, Mission and Core Values. Complete SWOT analysis, Competitive Matrix and Value Proposition. Map organizational structure, key processes, roles and accountability.
Identify essential goals and objectives. Develop financial, operational, and business development plans supported by actionable Key Performance Indicators.
Develop financial reporting and daily dashboards. Expand on pro-forma financials and cash flow statements to support funding applications or bank relationships.
Bankruptcy is the most severe remedy and, in most cases, the last option to consider. However, sometimes it is the most practical alternative — and with expert guidance, it can be managed to protect your interests.
The insolvency process is highly technical and can favor creditors over business owners. Without proper representation, you may face:
I don’t even know where to begin. You saved my business and my life.
I never believed for a second that anyone could help me out of my particular bad situation and out of the deep financial hole that I was buried in. Constantly being hounded by creditors, afraid to pick up the phone avoiding my own business some days so as not to have to face the threats and accusations, checking to see who was at the door before I answered it, Revenue Canada seizing my bank accounts, etc. It was a living nightmare.
In a moment of total exhaustion, I picked up the phone and asked for help and you guys reached out and gave it to me. Once all of my options were explained to me, (and I thought there were only two options, bankruptcy or death) we decided on a proposal to the creditors (LIFE). You arranged an interest free 6-month payment plan to Revenue Canada, and then after those payments were done to start paying back the rest of the creditors at 18 cents on the dollar interest free for the next 36 months.
Here it is 5 months after we first spoke. The phone only rings when someone wants to do business, I sleep at night again, my self loathing has stopped and my self respect has returned to take its place.
I know now, that lots of people like myself get into trouble partially from decisions they make and partially from outside influences that we have no control of. For me, it seemed that once I stepped on that escalator, there was no getting off until I hit bottom, but you guys stopped that, I just wish that had called you earlier.
You showed me options, made recommendations, organized meetings, held my hand when I needed it, (and there were a many days when I needed it), designed a reasonable repayment schedule, talked to and made peace with my creditors. You were with me every step of the way. You were very professional and respectful of the delicate financial and emotional situation that I was under, and so many other things. I know I can never thank you enough. I owe everything I have to you two. I will forever be grateful. If anyone ever questions what you can do for them, have them call me, I would love to tell them my story and what you did for me.
Yours very truly,
Questions about how the process works? Here are answers to the most common ones.
4 Pillars’ corporate restructuring division is led by two experienced partners who have been helping Canadian small businesses since 1998.
Paul’s expertise includes corporate debt restructuring and understanding all options available to a company facing overwhelming debt. He has a 25-year career in banking and investment, is a successful business owner, and has extensive franchise experience — giving him a uniquely practical perspective.
Co-founder and President of Corporate Transition Group and 4 Pillars Consulting Group. Reg has close to 20 years in the industry with a hands-on consulting style that builds success into the businesses he works with. His expertise spans business advisory, corporate turnarounds, and debt restructuring under the BIA.
