The Danish call centre that sold electricity contracts for scandal-hit brands like Velkommen and Nettopower is itself now drowning in debt. Salescorp’s newly filed 2025 accounts reveal negative equity nearing DKK 60 million and an auditor warning that survival through 2026 is uncertain, leaving tens of thousands of households trapped in a double-layered insolvency crisis.
As Denmark’s electricity retail scandals deepen this week, a troubling symmetry has emerged. Salescorp Denmark, the telemarketing engine behind Velkommen, Nettopower, Power Fuel and b.energy, now owes external creditors just over DKK 80 million in short-term debt. That figure nearly mirrors the DKK 80 million in unpaid customer prepayments sitting in Velkommen-group energy companies at the start of 2025, the most recent published estimate. On paper, Lars Hein’s call centre owes roughly one full year of household electricity prepayments to its own creditors while his energy brands simultaneously owe a similar amount to consumers.
The timing could hardly be worse. In April 2026, Forsyningstilsynet ordered Velkommen and Nettopower to immediately repay all outstanding balances after an investigation found late repayments in at least 3,192 of 3,470 cases at Velkommen and 2,969 of 3,003 cases at Nettopower. That is a systematic failure rate of 92 to 99 percent, far above typical market practice.
From Warnings to Police Reports
The companies ignored the order. By July 2026, grid operators Cerius and Radius filed police reports and bankruptcy petitions against four Velkommen-group companies. On 3 July, Velkommen A/S, Nettopower ApS, Power Fuel A/S and Vedvarende A/S were placed into reconstruction. Cerius told Politiken the companies owed a larger million-kroner amount in unpaid network charges, money collected from customers but never passed on.
The collapse triggered a conditional sale of 30,265 electricity contracts to another retailer, Energidrift, for DKK 16.7 million. But the deal explicitly excluded customers’ prepaid balances. Those liabilities remained locked inside the failing Velkommen entities. Households who had paid ahead for months or years of electricity now face the prospect of recovering nothing or only a fraction through bankruptcy proceedings.
The Call Centre Behind the Brands
Salescorp was the sales machine. It recruited customers by phone for Velkommen-group brands, often targeting English speakers and newcomers unfamiliar with Danish consumer law. In February 2025, Forbrugerombudsmanden fined the company for illegal telemarketing. At the time, its finances were not widely scrutinised. The newly filed 2025 accounts, analysed in August 2026, paint a dire picture. Negative equity stands at nearly DKK 60 million. Short-term liabilities exceed DKK 80 million. The auditor flagged material uncertainty about the company’s ability to continue operations through this year.
The revenue base has evaporated. Several of Salescorp’s largest clients have either terminated contracts, entered reconstruction or gone bankrupt in early 2026. The call centre’s main source of income has disappeared. At the same time, SKAT has demanded around DKK 100 million in unpaid tax from Velkommen’s two main owners. The tax authority placed attachments of DKK 83.5 million and DKK 17.9 million on their private homes. Financial pressure now extends from the companies to the individuals behind them.
Expats in the Crossfire
There is no official statistic separating non-Danish citizens among Velkommen-group’s customer base. As a proxy, about 11 to 12 percent of Denmark’s resident population were foreign citizens in 2025, according to Eurostat. Consumer organisations warn that expats are likely over-represented among customers with unpaid balances. They are frequently targeted by telemarketing because they open and close electricity contracts when moving between rental apartments.
Affected customers can still file claims and switch suppliers. But they must navigate Danish-language procedures and tight deadlines in reconstruction and bankruptcy processes. The reconstruction lawyer for Velkommen-group, Advokat Flemming Jensen, can be reached at Dalgasgade 29A, 3.th., 7400 Herning. Most official notices, court documents and Statstidende entries appear in Danish only. Expats who do not read Danish well should seek help from Ankenævnet på Energiområdet, Forbrugerrådet Tænk or municipal citizen service centres, some of which offer English assistance.
A Precedent Already Set
This is not the first time. When the original b.energy company went bankrupt in April 2024, around 9,000 customers were left with unpaid claims. Velkommen later took over the b.energy brand. Now a second wave of b.energy customers under Velkommen faces similar outcomes. The pattern suggests a business model built on holding consumer cash as long as possible, then shifting liabilities through restructuring or collapse.
Regulators and consumer advocates advise households to immediately halt further prepayments to troubled companies. Pay only for documented consumption to your grid operator or new supplier. Switch electricity provider as soon as possible using Energinet’s DataHub and comparison tools. Collect all invoices, final statements, payment receipts and email correspondence. Submit a formal claim in writing to the reconstruction or bankruptcy trustee. Keep confirmation of receipt.
Low Recovery Odds
Consumer finance writers now say households should adjust budgets assuming they might recover only a fraction of their balances, if any. The estimate that customers had DKK 80 million in prepayments at the beginning of 2025 remains the most recent published figure. What the amount is today is unknown. Assuming typical balances of DKK 1,500 to 3,000 per household, that corresponds to roughly 26,000 to 53,000 households exposed, equivalent to the electricity accounts of a mid-size Danish city.
The Velkommen-group collapse marks a shift in Denmark’s retail electricity market. For years, it was considered relatively safe with few high-profile consumer losses. The layered failure of both energy retail and telemarketing intermediaries reveals systemic risks in liberalised markets. A-conto billing gives retailers cheap liquidity but, without strong enforcement, can be misused to plug other business deficits. In this case, that appears to include funding Salescorp’s loss-making operations and possibly owners’ wider ventures.
For internationals living in Denmark, the lesson is clear. The companies most visible in English-language advertising and phone sales are not always the safest. There are no expat-specific protection mechanisms in energy regulation. Foreign residents must rely on general consumer rules and self-initiative, often in a language they do not fully command.
