Weinstein Co. LLC is set to file for bankruptcy after talks to sell its assets to an investor group collapsed, Variety reported Feb. 25.
The company's board on Feb. 25 notified Ron Burkle and former U.S. Small Business Administration administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet, the lead investors in the bid consortium, that it will no longer push through with the transaction due to the bidders' lack of financing for the company.
In the letter, the board reportedly called the consortium's intention to buy the company "illusory" and said the investors seemed to "have no intention to sign an agreement" and "no desire to save valuable assets and jobs."
In January, Weinstein Co. reported that it had short-listed six potential buyers, including Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., a consortium led by Contreras-Sweet, production company Killer Content and investment firms Vine Alternative Investments and Shamrock Capital Investments.
The company also had exclusive sale discussions with Colony Capital Inc. late in 2017, which later collapsed.
Weinstein Co., together with Harvey Weinstein and Robert Weinstein, is currently facing a lawsuit from New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for "egregious violations of New York's civil rights, human rights and business laws."
Schneiderman had previously opened a civil rights probe into Weinstein in relation to sexual harassment allegations faced by co-founder Harvey Weinstein.