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FTX raised equity capital before its collapse from Robert Kraft ‘s Kraft Group and entertainment giant Endeavor Group Holdings Inc., among other newly-identified backers who now face the loss of their investments in the once-highflying exchange, the Wall Street Journal reproted. The crypto firm’s chapter 11 administrators disclosed a new roster of its financial backers that listed affiliates of Kraft Group and entertainment giant Endeavor as holding common and preferred stock. FTX also disclosed that it raised capital from affiliates of investment offices including Daniel Och’s Willoughby Capital LLC and Blue Pool Capital, a Hong-Kong office backed by Alibaba Group co-founder Joseph Tsai, according to the shareholder list, filed in bankruptcy court on Tuesday. Marquee investors from the U.S. and around the world poured roughly $1.8 billion into FTX with few strings attached, valuing the firm at $32 billion at its peak. Equity holders are likely to be wiped out now that FTX has filed chapter 11. Customers are facing big losses and generally must be paid ahead of stockholders.

Forma Brands LLC, the parent company of beauty retailer Morphe LLC, filed for bankruptcy in Delaware on Thursday as it reached a deal with lenders including Jefferies and Cerberus Capital Management, Bloomberg News reported. As part of the agreement, secured creditors will take over Forma’s wholesale operations, online platforms and international Morphe retail stores while providing $33 million of new money, subject to court approval, according to a company statement. The court filing caps a tumultuous two-and-a-half years for the San Francisco-based company that failed to see revenues grow in spite of marketing deals with youtubers and influencers. The retailer recently announced that it would shutter all of Morphe’s retail locations in the U.S. It had to cut ties with two of its big three influencers and wrestle with a litany of litigation for missed rent and vendor payments. Forma has between $500 million and $1 billion in liabilities, according to court documents.

The owner of a former vermiculite mine in northwestern Montana that spread harmful asbestos in and around the town of Libby has offered $18.5 million to settle the last of the state’s claims for environmental damages, Gov. Greg Gianforte announced on Tuesday, the Associated Press reported. The proposed settlement was filed in W.R. Grace & Co.’s bankruptcy case in Delaware for the Libby Asbestos Superfund Site in Lincoln County. Asbestos from a vermiculite mine owned by W.R. Grace beginning in 1963 polluted the area until the mine was shuttered in 1990. Cleanup began in 2000, after media reports spurred federal officials to investigate widespread health problems among area residents. Health officials estimate that several thousand people have been sickened in northwest Montana from exposure to Libby’s asbestos and at least 400 have died. More than 2,600 homes, businesses and other properties were cleaned up at a cost of more than $600 million under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund program for hazardous sites. W.R. Grace agreed in a 2008 settlement to pay the EPA $250 million for cleanup work.

A Menomonee Falls window installer with hundreds of unhappy customers is entering chapter 11 bankruptcy, Fox6Now.com reported. Window Select confirmed that it plans to enter bankruptcy proceedings in late January. More than 400 consumers have filed complaints with Wisconsin Consumer Protection about Window Select. Many said they paid for projects that had not started — or were not finished. Window Select moved out of its headquarters in 2022. The company faces dozens of cases in small claims court.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. reported a wider net loss than expected yesterday, underscoring the likelihood of a bankruptcy filing within the next couple of months by one of the largest US home-goods retailers, Bloomberg News reported. The beleaguered retailer said its net loss widened to $393 million in the three months ended Nov. 26. Just last week, the company had said it expected to report a net loss of $386 million. That compares with a loss of $366 million in the second quarter. The company reiterated on Tuesday that it was considering “all strategic alternatives” to get back on financial track. “Multiple paths are being explored and we are determining our next steps thoroughly,” Bed Bath & Beyond Chief Executive Officer Sue Gove said in a statement. Last week, the retailer said those options included the possibility of bankruptcy, a warning that came after it withdrew a bond-swap offering. It had launched the plan in October to lessen its debt burden. The company said on Tuesday that it had about $200 million of cash on hand. Read more.

In related news, Bed Bath & Beyond will lay off more employees in an attempt to reduce costs, the company said yesterday, a week after announcing it was exploring options including bankruptcy, Reuters reported. Last year, company executives had said the home goods retailer was cutting about 20% of its corporate and supply chain workforce. "As our strategic direction changes and we streamline our operations, it is necessary to right-size our organization to ensure we are equipped for the future," the company said in a statement on Tuesday, without revealing the magnitude of the new layoffs. Read more.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. has brought on turnaround consultant AlixPartners as its new restructuring adviser as the troubled home-goods retailer prepares for a likely bankruptcy, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The company has also been working with law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP and investment banker Lazard Ltd. on restructuring efforts, and last week said it is considering all options including a bankruptcy filing to battle its declining cash and dropping revenue. AlixPartners replaced Berkeley Research Group LLC, a consulting firm Bed Bath & Beyond had been working with since the middle of last year. A representative for Bed Bath declined to comment on AlixPartners’s hire and added that it has a team “internally and externally with proven experience in helping companies successfully navigate complex situations and become stronger.” BRG was brought on in June to help Bed Bath improve its cash and inventory levels and balance sheet. The retailer secured $375 million in loans in August to shore up its cash position and help pay down some existing debt. The company planned to reduce its spending by cutting $150 million in capital expenditures for fiscal 2022. The loans provided by Sixth Street Partners helped pad its liquidity and assuage vendors’ concerns about the retailer’s ability to pay them. The company went on a roadshow in the fall to convince vendors not to tighten payment schedules on goods shipments.

Party City Holdco Inc. has sought funding for a potential chapter 11 bankruptcy, Bloomberg News reported. The company, which is preparing to enter bankruptcy protection within weeks, is sharing information with potential providers of debtor-in-possession financing, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. Rockaway, N.J.-based Party City has been negotiating with a creditor group that includes Capital Group Cos Inc. and Silver Point Capital ahead of the potential filing, Bloomberg reported. Known for selling balloons and other festive supplies, Party City has been squeezed by a higher costs of goods and shipping as well as a helium shortage. Sales during the critical Halloween period disappointed investors. The retailer has been getting advice from Moelis & Co. and law firm Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison.

Crypto exchange FTX will ask a U.S. bankruptcy court on Wednesday to allow it to auction off pieces of its business and to keep customer names secret for at least six months while it works to recover funds lost in what was allegedly a huge fraud, Reuters reported. FTX will ask U.S. Bankruptcy Judge John Dorsey in Delaware to approve procedures for selling affiliates LedgerX, Embed, FTX Japan and FTX Europe as a way of raising funds for customers, who have lost potentially billions of dollars. FTX's founder, Sam Bankman-Fried was indicted on two counts of wire fraud and six conspiracy counts last month in Manhattan federal court for allegedly stealing customer deposits to pay debts from his hedge fund, Alameda Research, and lying to equity investors about FTX's financial condition. He has pleaded not guilty. The four companies FTX intends to sell are relatively independent from the broader FTX group, and each has its own segregated customer accounts and separate management teams, according to FTX court filings. The crypto exchange has said it is not committed to selling any of the companies, but that it received dozens of unsolicited offers. FTX expects to generate additional bids by scheduling auctions in February and March. The U.S. Trustee, a bankruptcy watchdog that is part of the Department of Justice, has opposed selling the affiliates before an extensive investigation can be done into the extent of the FTX fraud allegedly carried out by Bankman-Fried.