South Eastern Secured Investments, a Gippsland-based rural finance company, has hit the wall, with the appointment during the week of receivers and managers. At least one nearby finance firm, Gippsland Secured Investments, is also flagging, and rumours are spreading in country Victoria over the viability of others affiliated to the Provincial Finance Group. Trustees of SESI appointed Mark Korda and Craig Shepard of KordaMentha as receivers on Wednesday. The receivers, who froze redemptions yesterday, are seeking a buyer for the firm.An escalation in redemption requests over the last couple of weeks, on top of outflows during the last quarter of 2008, may be the short-term trigger for the firm's insolvency.SESI draws most of its investments from locals around Korumburra in south Gippsland, including many dairy farmers.Three of the directors, including the chief executive and founder of the firm, John Maguire, are partners in the local law firm of Birch, Ross and Barlow.Permanent Nominees (Aust) Limited was trustee for SESI and WHK Armitage Downie were the firm's auditors.The last prospectus issued by SESI, in September 2008, showed a loan portfolio of $152 million as at one month earlier, covering 390 loans. The largest loan (to an aged-care developer) represented more than 10 per cent of the portfolio while the three largest loans represented more than 27 per cent of the portfolio (the third of which was also in the field of aged care).Six per cent of the loans were more than 90 days in arrears. To the extent that smaller, farmer borrowers reflect the depositor base, the declining milk price is likely to be having an impact on the capacity of creditors to meet their loan payments.Five months ago SESI had liabilities of $191 million with eight per cent of that "at call", though more than 80 per cent was invested for terms of one year or more. About 3000 people have investments with the firm, according to KordaMentha.The prospectus showed a net profit of $2.7 million in the year to June 2008, steady with 2007.The company wrote down $3 million in reserves - not recognised in the profit and loss - of "credit rated securities" - and which sound like a structured investment product of the kind that produced investment losses at many councils.The stresses at SESI may be spilling over the other local debenture-funded financiers in the district.Outflows are rising at Gippsland Secured Investments, based in Bairnsdale.GSI, like SESI, appears to have incurred significant losses (of $2.5 million) on financial investments (and not recognised in the P&L).GSI had assets of $101 million and liabilities of $105 million at June 2008.South Eastern Secured Investments and Gippsland Secured Investments were both part of the Provincial Finance Group in Victoria (and one in New South Wales), a network of 12 niche financiers  tied to local law firms.The ProVic website was down yesterday. WIN Securities in Wangaratta appears to undertake coordination of the ProVic group and its managers have been unresponsive to efforts to talk about ProVic members over the last couple of weeks.The