What We’re Reading This Week [March 31, 2020]
Law360 reports that Bar Louie has cancelled a previously scheduled chapter 11 auction and will, instead, be sold to its secured lenders that served as the stalking horse bidder. Bar Louie reportedly received no other qualified bids. [Law360; Mar. 27, 2020]
The recently enacted CARES Act seeks to aid consumer and small business debtors, reports The Wall Street Journal. For consumer debtors, the CARES Act protects forthcoming federal stimulus checks from being used to pay pre-petition debts. For commercial debtors, the CARES Act expands access to relief under the recently enacted Small Business Reorganization Act (“SBRA”) by temporarily increasing the law’s debt threshold. The SBRA’s $2,725,625.00 debt threshold will be increased to $7,500,000.00 for the next 12 months. [WSJ; Mar. 26, 2020]
Writing for Bloomberg Opinion, Matt Levine writes on the current state of repos and margin calls in the mortgage market as COVID-19 coronavirus continues to inject uncertainty into the market. [Bloomberg; Mar. 26, 2020]
NBC reports on recent projections from S&P that the default rate on high yield bonds over the next 12 months could reach approximately 10-13%. Default rates on high yield bonds reached 3.1% at the end of 2019. [NBC; Mar. 20, 2020]
