Monday, March 2nd 2009
Spansion Files for Bankruptcy
Spansion Inc., the world's largest pure-play provider of Flash memory solutions, today filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code as part of its strategy to strengthen its financial position and focus its business for long-term success. The company's strategic plan is designed to restructure its burdensome debt obligations and intensify its focus on market segments with greater profit potential. Each of Spansion's domestic subsidiaries also simultaneously filed chapter 11 petitions.
"Given our focus on Spansion's future, management and the Board have concluded that chapter 11 provides the most effective means for Spansion to preserve its business, meet its post-petition obligations and maintain customer confidence and continuity while we complete this restructuring," said President and CEO John Kispert. "At the same time we will continue to explore opportunities for a strategic transaction to ensure that we are doing all we can to maximize value for our stakeholders."
The decision to seek chapter 11 protection was made in consultation with an ad hoc consortium of holders of Spansion's $625 million Senior Secured Floating Rate Notes due 2013. Spansion continues to be actively engaged in constructive discussions with this ad hoc consortium for the development of a plan of reorganization that would permit Spansion to emerge quickly from chapter 11 in a stronger financial and competitive position and for the continued exploration of multiple proposals from multiple parties seeking a strategic transaction.
The company believes that its current and anticipated cash resources will be sufficient to pay its expenses and maintain its business operations while it explores and implements options to address its long-term cash needs. Among other things, the company is in discussion with the ad hoc consortium about providing a debtor-in-possession (DIP) credit facility, while also simultaneously pursuing other options intended to provide the company with additional liquidity for its long-term cash needs.
Spansion emphasized that it intends to maintain customer service throughout the reorganization. "We will be intensely focused on continuing to provide our customers with superior engineering and world-class customer support," Kispert said.
As previously announced, on February 9, 2009, Spansion's Japanese subsidiary, Spansion Japan Ltd., voluntarily entered into a proceeding under the Corporate Reorganization Law (Kaisha Kosei Ho) of Japan to obtain protection from its creditors as part of the company's restructuring efforts. None of Spansion's subsidiaries in countries other than the United States and Japan are included in the U.S. or Japan filings.
Spansion Intensifies Focus on Profitable Segments
Spansion also said it plans to align its business to focus on products and segments in the embedded, IP solutions and wireless markets that have the highest profit potential.
"With our valuable portfolio of industry leading products and technology, we believe Spansion has a promising future," Kispert said. "By focusing on embedded Flash memory products, IP solutions, and the profitable portions of the wireless segment, we believe Spansion can leverage its diverse product portfolio and customer relationships while we continue our restructuring process and explore opportunities for a strategic transaction."
Spansion, Spansion LLC, Spansion Technology LLC, Spansion International, Inc. and Cerium Laboratories LLC filed their voluntary petitions for relief under chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The chapter 11 filings by Spansion and its domestic subsidiaries are events of default under Spansion's debt instruments.
Source:
Spansion
"Given our focus on Spansion's future, management and the Board have concluded that chapter 11 provides the most effective means for Spansion to preserve its business, meet its post-petition obligations and maintain customer confidence and continuity while we complete this restructuring," said President and CEO John Kispert. "At the same time we will continue to explore opportunities for a strategic transaction to ensure that we are doing all we can to maximize value for our stakeholders."
The decision to seek chapter 11 protection was made in consultation with an ad hoc consortium of holders of Spansion's $625 million Senior Secured Floating Rate Notes due 2013. Spansion continues to be actively engaged in constructive discussions with this ad hoc consortium for the development of a plan of reorganization that would permit Spansion to emerge quickly from chapter 11 in a stronger financial and competitive position and for the continued exploration of multiple proposals from multiple parties seeking a strategic transaction.
The company believes that its current and anticipated cash resources will be sufficient to pay its expenses and maintain its business operations while it explores and implements options to address its long-term cash needs. Among other things, the company is in discussion with the ad hoc consortium about providing a debtor-in-possession (DIP) credit facility, while also simultaneously pursuing other options intended to provide the company with additional liquidity for its long-term cash needs.
Spansion emphasized that it intends to maintain customer service throughout the reorganization. "We will be intensely focused on continuing to provide our customers with superior engineering and world-class customer support," Kispert said.
As previously announced, on February 9, 2009, Spansion's Japanese subsidiary, Spansion Japan Ltd., voluntarily entered into a proceeding under the Corporate Reorganization Law (Kaisha Kosei Ho) of Japan to obtain protection from its creditors as part of the company's restructuring efforts. None of Spansion's subsidiaries in countries other than the United States and Japan are included in the U.S. or Japan filings.
Spansion Intensifies Focus on Profitable Segments
Spansion also said it plans to align its business to focus on products and segments in the embedded, IP solutions and wireless markets that have the highest profit potential.
"With our valuable portfolio of industry leading products and technology, we believe Spansion has a promising future," Kispert said. "By focusing on embedded Flash memory products, IP solutions, and the profitable portions of the wireless segment, we believe Spansion can leverage its diverse product portfolio and customer relationships while we continue our restructuring process and explore opportunities for a strategic transaction."
Spansion, Spansion LLC, Spansion Technology LLC, Spansion International, Inc. and Cerium Laboratories LLC filed their voluntary petitions for relief under chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The chapter 11 filings by Spansion and its domestic subsidiaries are events of default under Spansion's debt instruments.
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Spansion was founded in 1993 as a joint venture between AMD and Japan's Fujitsu Ltd. AMD took control of the company in 2003 and spun it off as an independent maker of flash memory chips in December 2005. Since the spinoff, the company has not made a profit.[1] The company has consistently lost money since it went public and lost $133 million in the third quarter of 2008, the most recent period for which it has disclosed financial data.[2] On February 23, 2009 the company laid off 3,000 employees without severance pay, while CEO John Kispert was given a bonus of $1.8 million[1][3] and managers received a 10% pay raise.[2] The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on March 1, 2009 amidst an outcry by laid-off workers.