STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Wednesday, 7 March 2012

[Demeter]

35. Lehman Estate Emerges From Bankruptcy

http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/03/06/lehman-estate-emerges-from-bankruptcy/

More than three years after Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, the estate of the failed Wall Street firm emerged from Chapter 11 protection on Tuesday as a sliver of its former self, devoted to paying off creditors.

What once was one of Wall Street’s biggest investment banks is now essentially a holding company for assets that include vast real estate holdings and an array of securities like derivatives.

All of those will be sold over time to pay an army of creditors, including hedge funds, money managers and corporations, with claims of more than $300 billion. Lehman said in a statement that its first payout, which could exceed $10 billion, would be made on April 17. Creditors are expected on average to receive well below 50 cents for each dollar of their claims when the payouts are finished.

Enron met a similar fate after its bankruptcy filing. Its estate emerged from Chapter 11 protection in 2004 as a holding company whose assets have been sold to pay claims. Creditors so far have received nearly $22 billion...