bankruptcy

How the Gawker Media Bankruptcy Will Work

Jonathan Guilford · 06/21/16 09:45AM

Gawker Media has filed for bankruptcy. The specific circumstances leading to that bankruptcy are unique and bizarre. The fact of a media company declaring itself bankrupt, however, is pretty much a commonplace. Under other conditions—even facing down a different, more conventionally motivated lawsuit—Gawker’s bankruptcy process might seem somewhat straightforward.

Allie Jones · 12/30/15 12:06PM

KaloBios Inc., the biotech company that fired its CEO Martin Shkreli earlier this month after he was arrested for fraud, filed for bankruptcy today. That makes two former Shkreli companies that aren’t doing so hot: Turing Pharmaceuticals announced layoffs last week.

50 Cent: I'm Not Rich, I Just Borrowed Tons of Cool, Expensive Shit

Jay Hathaway · 07/23/15 10:10AM

Facing down a $5 million judgment for posting a sex tape of Rick Ross’s baby mama, 50 Cent has declared bankruptcy to prove he can’t pay. It’s somewhat convenient that, after Forbes named him one of the richest rappers in the world just a few months ago, 50 claims his reported $155 million fortune is really just $4.375 million. He said this week that he rented cars and borrowed jewelry to keep up appearances.

Can Radio Shack Save Itself?

Hamilton Nolan · 09/12/14 08:46AM

Radio Shack, also known as "The Shack" or "The King of Replacement Parts for Electronic Items that No Longer Exist," is teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. Can the good old "We Sell Modern Products Now—We Swear!" find itself a reason to exist?

Michelle Dean · 04/16/14 08:43AM

Mt. Gox, the beleaguered Bitcoin exchange, reportedly told a Tokyo court that it's giving up the ghost. It will shut down entirely and pay creditors out of what's left. That means its creditors are likely to get relatively few of their lost bitcoins (and other investments) back.

Michelle Dean · 03/28/14 12:05PM

Those waiting to learn the fate of the Bitcoins they stored with the troubled Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox will have to wait a little longer. The investigator appointed by the Japanese bankruptcy court, who was due to report findings today, was given until May 9 to figure out what the hell happened.

Hamilton Nolan · 02/07/14 09:43AM

Piles of garbage, city services that don't work, inept local government, horrible financial mismanagement, exploitation by big banks, and now a looming bankruptcy: Naples is the Detroit of Italy. (They both have nice art museums, too!)

Detroit Can Keep Its Art

Hamilton Nolan · 01/13/14 04:38PM

Some people thought that Detroit, a city that is bankrupt, might have to sell off the valuable art in its art museum in order to help pay its debts. Detroit will not have to do this after all.

Time to Bring Bankruptcy Back for Student Loan Debt

Hamilton Nolan · 08/21/13 12:02PM

Thanks to some misguided moral philosophy and some excellent lobbying work, it is now almost impossible to discharge your student loans in bankruptcy. They haunt you forever, like the souls of those you've killed. As our national student loan debt balloons further into crisis territory, it become ever clearer that we need to change that rule.

Precious Art Appraised as Detroit Tries to Dig Out of Debt

Cord Jefferson · 08/05/13 07:54PM

A couple weeks after a state-appointed emergency manager filed a bankruptcy claim on behalf of Detroit, the world-famous Christie's auction house has been called in to begin appraising some of the Detroit Institute of Arts' permanent collection. But lest you should assume this is the sign of vultures coming in to pick at a decaying carcass. everyone involved in this process promises this is just a formality and no art will be sold.

Miami No Longer Miserable, Forbes Declares

Mallory Ortberg · 02/23/13 02:01PM

Forbes released its list of America's Most Miserable Cities this week, with appearances from the usual smattering of former manufacturing towns in the Rust Belt, bankrupt municipalities in central California, and burned-out coastal shells. Do you live in any of these cities? Are you unhappy? Would you describe your unhappiness as conditional and dependent on external forces, or so pervasive you barely notice it?

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Is a Broke-Ass Sinkhole of Despair

Hamilton Nolan · 02/01/13 10:45AM

In 2011, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania went bankrupt. Municipally bankrupt. The city is broke, tapped, in penury, scraping by on nada. Personal bankruptcy is tragic, and corporate bankruptcy is financially significant, but there is something especially pitiful about municipal bankruptcies. An entire city of thousands, whose leadership has failed them. It's like watching a scrappy but flailing football team losing in a particularly bloody way.