Updated Nov 4, 2020
August 2019 Lars Henrik Wollebekk declared the Norwegian companies Language Education Norge A/S and Speak Norge A/S bankrupt. October 2017 Language Education Denmark A/S and Speak Holding ApS. In 2017 ELG: European Language Group, Sarl was also liquidated. Such bankruptcies create a unique problem when it comes to exchange students. In both 2019 and 2017 students had already been sent abroad to live with their host families. Since employees had not been informed ahead of time, they had to figure out what would happen with regards to the students abroad and the ones who were waiting to go. Abroad partner companies had to take the brunt. In Norway the company that handled the liquidations stated that nothing illegal had happened and that there was no reason for a company quarantine. I was asked by Wollebekk’s attorney to remove any private information regarding Wollebekk from my sites (and FB)*.
Another of Wollebekk’s exchange organizations, Speak Education Nordic AB (Language Education) in Sweden, was liquidated October 2020.
Only Speak Cultural Exchange UK Ltd. in England seems to remain as a purely student exchange organization with Wollebekk as owner. Indirectly tied to student exchange we find Norwegian Combank IT Systems AS. It is listed as designing net-based IT systems for (among other things) exchange organizations. In Denmark his Zaruben Capital ApS is listed as an advisory and PR company. However, exchange organizations are not specifically listed.
Lars Henrik Wollebekk’s companies
- Speak Holding ApS – Dissolved
- Language Education ApS, Denmark (Aspect High School) – Dissolved
- Language Education Norge AS (Aspect High School)
- Speak Norge AS
- ELG: European Language Group, Sarl – Dissolved
- Speak Cultural Exchange UK Ltd.
- Speak Education Nordic AB
- Combank IT Systems
- European Language Group, USA
- Advisory Board ApS (Zaruben Capital ApS)
*All of the information listed in this post is publicly available and of public interest as it pertains to the exchange industry and those wishing to participate in an exchange experience.
Foreign student exchange 