Austria's Supreme Court of Justice has rejected a restructuring plan for Signa Development, a unit of property tycoon Rene Benko's firm Signa, meaning it must undergo bankruptcy proceedings, the insolvency administrator said on Monday.

The aim is now to utilize the assets of the business as well as possible in the interests of the creditors, insolvency administrator Andrea Fruhstorfer said in a statement.

The Supreme Court's decision dismissed an appeal by Signa Development and upheld an earlier ruling by a top appeal court in Vienna, the statement said.

Signa, the property empire founded by Benko, has been one of the biggest casualties of Europe's real estate crisis, with creditors filing claims worth billions of euros.

  - Reuters