U.S. retailer Sears has borrowed about $150 million from lenders, including its billionaire owner Eddie Lampert, as it racks up losses less than a year after it emerged from bankruptcy protection, Reuters reported. The new financing will help stock Sears’ store shelves for the holiday shopping season, as it struggles to become profitable. Lampert is no stranger to bankrolling Sears, having extended loans through his hedge fund ESL Investments Inc. to the department store chain over the past decade until its financial collapse last year. The new financing is backed by assets that include Sears’ real estate and intellectual property, the sources said. The funds are less than the roughly $200 million Sears originally sought. Sears was unable to borrow as much as it wanted because lenders were concerned about the 126-year-old company’s prospects and financial wherewithal. Among those that provided the financing was hedge fund Cyrus Capital Partners LP, which extended a loan to the retailer while it navigated bankruptcy court last year, one of the sources said. Sears is still hoping to negotiate with lenders and secure the roughly $200 million.
