Below is our initial take on recent bankruptcy-related developments:

U.S. Mattress Maker Serta Simmons Files for Bankruptcy Protection | Reuters

Serta Simmons Bedding, one of America’s largest bedding companies by market share, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this week with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Texas. Serta Simmons will attempt to eliminate most of its $1.9 billion debt.

S&K Take: Another bankruptcy that was predated by a liability management transaction. One of the interesting aspects of this filing is that the Debtors have filed an adversary seeking to head off other litigation related to the 2020 uptier exchange consummated by the company. Debtors are seeking a stay of non-bankruptcy litigation as well as a declaratory judgment that the priority scheme established by that transaction is valid. The lenders that were impacted by the uptier transaction are challenging this construct. At the first day hearing, Judge Jones was skeptical that these issues needed to be resolved prior to confirmation and told the parties to discuss. This is going to be a fascinating case to watch.

MLB Preps for Sinclair Bankruptcy Restructuring | Ballpark Digest

America’s largest owner of local sports channels is moving toward an $8.6 billion restructuring, which could drastically alter Major League Baseball’s broadcast revenues and payments made to MLB’s teams. Soon-to-be bankrupt Sinclair, and its subsidiary Diamond Sports Group LLC, have suffered from a decline in cable-TV subscribers.

S&K Take: A massive bankruptcy in the offing (or maybe closer than that?) with bonds trading in the low double digits. The underlying regional sports industry has seen a huge paradigm shift in recent years and so a reshuffling of the deck seems to be in order. There could be some impact on MLB teams affiliated with Bally Sports, as payment streams could be interrupted. By and large, however, it seems like the leagues just need to determine how they are going to move forward with respect to streaming and other media. The bankruptcy case seems like a debt for equity swap, and we will keep you posted on that.

Bankrupt Brazilian Retailer Americanas Owes About $8 Billion, Court Finds | Reuters

This week, a Rio de Janeiro court found that bankrupt Brazilian retailer Americanas owes creditors, including banks and investment firms, around $8 billion, detailing the exposure many financial institutions had to one of South America’s largest retailers.

S&K Take: We covered this case last week, with the Brazilian retailer seeking protection from creditors in Rio. We note it again this week as the Rio court made a determination that the company owes creditors about $8 billion. Seems like South American banks have the most exposure. The bankruptcy is largely the result of a massive accounting issue. The company has also sought chapter 15 relief to protect assets in the States.

Bankrupt Crypto Lender Genesis Optimistic It Can Resolve Creditor Disputes | Reuters

Lawyers for Genesis Global Capital, which filed for bankruptcy last week, said they are confident that the crypto lender will resolve its disputes with creditors and achieve its goal of exiting from Chapter 11 before the end of May.

S&K Take: We covered the Genesis filing last week as another crypto domino fell. This case looks like it may have a “happy” ending though; the Debtors and several creditor groups are optimistic that an accord can be reached paving the way to a consensual restructuring. The backbone of the case is a “toggle” plan, which contemplates either a sale or an equitization of debt.