Chrysler Chapter 11 Is Imminent

Creditor Talks Collapse as Hedge Funds Balk at Deal; Fiat Waiting in the Wings By NEIL KING JR. and JEFFREY MCCRACKEN WASHINGTON -- Talks between the Treasury Department and lenders aimed at keeping Chrysler LLC out of bankruptcy broke down Wednesday, making it all but certain the car maker will file for Chapter 11 protection Thursday, according to people familiar with the discussions. Administration officials, who have been braced for a Chrysler bankruptcy filing for weeks, say all the pieces are in place to get the company through the court quickly, perhaps in a matter of weeks. The talks with Chrysler's lenders broke down after the Obama administration's automotive task force worked into the evening to persuade several hedge funds and other lenders to accept a deal to reduce Chrysler's debt, said people involved in the talks. The Treasury boosted its most recent offer to lenders on Wednesday by $250 million to $2.25 billion in cash for the banks and hedge funds to forgive $6.9 billion in Chrysler debt, people familiar with the matter said. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., which leads the creditor group as Chrysler's largest lender, gave the other 45 banks and hedge funds 90 minutes Wednesday to vote on the deal. A large number of the funds voted no and refused to budge, paving the way for an all but unavoidable trip to bankruptcy court, said people close to the talks. Chrysler's likely trip to bankruptcy court is a watershed moment for the car maker that popularized the minivan, is the home of the Jeep and managed to rebound from an earlier financial crisis in the late 1970s. But Chrysler's fortunes have faded since its breakup with Daimler AG two years ago. A trip through the courts will open a new chapter of uncertainty as the company's lenders and its thousands of affiliated dealers could mount a series of legal challenges to the administration's efforts to pull off a swift reorganization. If the Obama administration's calculations are correct, the process should pave the way for Italian auto maker Fiat SpA to take over the American company. More Autos News A Chrysler Creditor Finds Himself TornGM Bondholders Seek to Control EquityChrysler Workers Push for OwnershipGM Salaried Workers to See Pay CutMean Street: Mr. Bloom's Magnificent DealBank holdouts may get blamed for pushing Chrysler into court. But there are other reasons behind the move. One reason Chrysler needs to file for bankruptcy protection is so that Fiat can clear out hundreds of auto dealers from its sales network, which is easier to do in bankruptcy where dealer franchisee agreements can quickly be rejected or amended. The auto maker also has asbestos and environmental liabilities that Fiat doesn't want and are more easily shed in bankruptcy court. The administration worked to the wire to seal a deal outside of court that would put Chrysler in an alliance with Fiat and forge an arrangement between the car company and the United Auto Workers union. Chrysler's UAW membership passed a related negotiated deal with the car company late Wednesday. Fiat is expected to signal its approval for an alliance with Chrysler on Thursday. Administration officials said they remained confident Chrysler could shed much of its debt and come out of a court-supervised restructuring as a stronger company. They ruled out the possibility that Chrysler could end up being liquidated and sold off in pieces. Despite shrinking radically in recent years, Chrysler still employs about 54,000 people in the country with assembly and parts plants all over Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. President Barack Obama said Wednesday that he is "very hopeful" of a resolution that maintains Chrysler as a viable company. "I think some tough choices are being made" by Chrysler's lenders and workers, Mr. Obama said in response to questions at a prime-time news conference. If Chrysler were to file, "it would be a very quick type of bankruptcy," Mr. Obama added. Treasury officials remain concerned that a Chapter 11 filing could lead to a loss of control of the car maker's future. Some Chrysler creditors could argue in court that the company is worth more to them in liquidation than they are granted in the Treasury's deal, which offers the creditors about 29 cents on the dollar in cash. Some of the creditors have signaled they are prepared to fight the matter in court. The administration last month gave Chrysler until May 1 to seal an alliance with Fiat, negotiate a new cost-cutting arrangement with the UAW and pare its debt. Assuming a brisk passage through court, the administration has worked out a deal that will grant the UAW's retiree-health-care fund a 55% stake in the car company, while Fiat will eventually gain a 35% stake. The rest will be in the hands of the federal government. Chrysler has about 115,000 retirees. As part of the UAW deal, the union agreed to eliminate a number of benefits. Bank-debt holders, many of them hedge funds or distressed debt funds, voted against the latest deal for various reasons, ranging from financial interests to philosophical ones. Some said their funds had bigger positions in Ford Motor Co. or General Motors Corp. and could benefit by a Chrysler bankruptcy and the production capacity that may eliminate. Some funds may also have credit-default swaps on Chrysler bank debt that pay out in the event of a bankruptcy. Three of the bank-debt holders on the bank-steering committee, Oppenheimer Funds, Perella Weinberg Partners' Xerion Capital Fund and Stairway Cap Management, told J.P. Morgan and the other large lenders on a bank call Tuesday that they wouldn't support the deal and would advise other lenders not to support it. It is unclear whether the later counteroffer changed their position. Write to Neil King Jr. at neil.king@wsj.com and Jeffrey McCracken at jeff.mccracken@wsj.com