GM Says Had $13.6 Billion Cash in Escrow Account in October

DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Co had $13.6 billion remaining in its U.S. government-funded escrow account as of October, after making payments related to the restructuring of its former parts subsidiary Delphi, the company said on Monday.

GM said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it had deposited $16.4 billion of cash left over from its government-funded bankruptcy to the escrow account when it emerged from court protection on July 10.

In October, the automaker used $ 2.8 billion of that cash to buy Delphi's steering business and other assets under a plan to support Delphi's reorganization in bankruptcy.

Delphi, which GM spun off in 1999, ended four years in bankruptcy last month by completing the transactions with GM and selling most of its other assets to bankruptcy creditors.

GM, which slashed debt and costs in its fast-track bankruptcy, has not had to use any of the government reserve cash to cover operating expenses.

The U.S. Treasury, which provided about $50 billion in financing for GM's restructuring, owns more than 60 percent of the No. 1 U.S. automaker.

GM remains Delphi's biggest customer, and Delphi is GM's biggest parts supplier.

A collapse of Delphi could have forced a near total shutdown of GM production, choking off revenue as the automaker rushes to complete its own turnaround after emerging from bankruptcy in July.

(Reporting by Soyoung Kim)

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