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Vantage Protects Interests in Pursuit of $622 Million Petrobras Award

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An Amsterdam judge has allowed Vantage Drilling International to restrict some assets of Brazil’s state-run oil company, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A., a win for the Houston-based offshore energy contractor in its attempt to collect a $622 million arbitration award, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The dispute concerns a drilling contract Petrobras terminated in 2015, a turn that contributed to Vantage filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December of that year. The contract was cut off amid a corruption probe in Brazil. Both companies have denied involvement in corruption. The prospect of collecting damages from Petrobras for the terminated contract was a component of Vantage’s prepackaged chapter 11 bankruptcy plan. The possibility of a win in the contract fight with Petrobras was built into the calculations for everything from management rewards to the collateral package for exit financing. The decision, issued Wednesday in Amsterdam but made public yesterday, authorizes the company to attach bank accounts and shares Petrobras holds in subsidiaries incorporated in the Netherlands, court papers say.

Toys ‘R’ Us Sale of Asia Unit Threatened by Solus-Cerberus Brawl

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The sale of Toys “R” Us’s last and most valuable remaining asset, its Asia operations, has become caught up in a battle between two groups of hedge funds over the future use of the brand by stores in that region, Bloomberg News reported. One group of funds, including Cerberus Capital Management and Cyrus Capital Partners, owns notes issued by the Asian stores and would be the lead bidder for the shops. Another group, which includes Solus Alternative Asset Management and affiliates of Oaktree Capital Management, claims control over the rights to the Toys “R” Us name, because it was collateral on loans the funds had made to the company. The second group, known as the B-4 lenders, believes the Asian stores aren’t paying enough for the use of the brand and has reserved its right to sue whoever wins the auction for the shops, according to court documents. In court papers on Thursday, they asked a judge to rewrite the auction rules and argued that any bidders in the sale need to negotiate with them over how much the Asian business will pay to call itself Toys “R” Us. In their objection, the B-4 lenders used the technical language of bankruptcy law to issue a veiled warning to any bidders who try to top the $760 million opening offer made by the Cerberus group, which is known as the Taj lenders. “Bidders, therefore, will have to understand the contractual terms and causes of action in deciding how much to bid and whether to engage in direct discussions” with the B-4 lenders, the group said in its filing.

Broyhill, Thomasville Furniture Lines Garner Interest From Schottenstein Affiliate

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A liquidation business with ties to the family that owns the Value City Furniture and American Signature Furniture chains said it is interested in buying the Thomasville and Broyhill brands from bankrupt manufacturer Heritage Home Group LLC, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Last month, Heritage Home filed for chapter 11 with plans to sell its stable of furniture brands to help it pay down $280 million in debt. It already had a $17.4 million offer in hand for its luxury line, which includes the Hickory Chair and Pearson brands, but it hadn’t received a firm offer for the nonluxury brands, Thomasville and Broyhill, the company said in a court hearing last month.

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Oaktree Plans $1.5 Billion Bid for Bankrupt Claire’s

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Oaktree Capital Management LP is trying to put together a $1.5 billion bid for bankrupt teen retailer Claire’s Stores Inc., a lawyer for the junior noteholder said at a hearing on Friday, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy. Oaktree, an investment firm that holds $159 million in Claire’s secured second-lien notes, has long opposed the teen retailer’s existing reorganization plan, saying it favors senior bondholders as well as private-equity firm Apollo Management Holdings LP. Apollo holds Claire’s equity as well as some of its debt. Claire’s went private in 2007 in a leveraged buyout led by Apollo. An Apollo investment fund owns 98 percent of the equity of parent Claire’s Inc., which is also part of the bankruptcy. Last month Oaktree said that it had submitted a bid superior to the offer currently on the table. The firm did not at the time disclose the value of the preliminary all-cash offer but said it would be paid in a lump sum and would yield greater recoveries than those offered under the existing plan. Oaktree also said at the time that it was still trying to raise the financing.

Dell-Backed Buyer Outbids Larian for Two Toys ‘R’ Us Warehouses

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A buyer financed by the private investment firm of Michael S. Dell boosted its bid at the last minute to win the most valuable properties of bankrupt retailer Toys “R” Us Inc. in a court-managed sale, Bloomberg News reported. A joint venture between Saadia Group and Square Mile Capital used a $120 million loan from MSD Partners to convince a bankruptcy judge to accept its bid for two of Toys “R” Us’s distribution centers over a competing offer from Isaac Larian, the chief executive of toymaker MGA Entertainment. The Saadia venture will pay $177 million for the properties in California and New Jersey, which a Toys “R” Us lawyer called the most valuable real estate owned by the retailer’s U.S. business.

Sears CEO's Hedge Fund Offers to Buy Kenmore Brand for $400 Million

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Sears said in a regulatory filing yesterday that a hedge fund owned by the chief executive of Sears Holdings Corp., Edward Lampert, has offered to buy the company’s Kenmore appliances brand for $400 million in cash, Reuters reported. ESL Investments also made an offer to buy the Home Improvement business of the company’s home services division for as much as $80 million in cash, according to the filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The offer for Kenmore is conditional on ESL receiving equity financing from a potential partner, according to the filing. No partner was named. Lampert said in April that Sears should sell its Kenmore brand, home improvement businesses and real estate, and that ESL Investments would bid in any sale.