Overview
- At investor day, President Brian Friedman said the Point Bonita fund operates independently from investment banking and that its 2019 First Brands engagement was made separately.
- CEO Rich Handler told investors the firm believes it was defrauded by First Brands, echoing disclosures intended to reassure on risk management.
- Jefferies reiterated that any direct hit is readily absorbable; Point Bonita holds about $715 million in First Brands receivables, while a company letter reported by Fortune put the bank’s direct stake near $45 million and a Morningstar estimate pegged losses after recoveries comfortably under $100 million.
- Law firms Bleichmar Fonti & Auld and Glancy Prongay & Murray launched shareholder investigations into whether Jefferies and Point Bonita misled investors about the $715 million exposure.
- First Brands’ Chapter 11 listed more than $10 billion in liabilities, a reported DOJ probe is examining its financing arrangements, and fallout has weighed on credit markets with regional banks disclosing charge-offs and fraud claims.