After the parent company filed for bankruptcy, many German online shops could be at risk of going out of business. We explain the situation.
Tennis-Point’s bankruptcy filing has caused considerable waves and is spreading further. The parent company, Signa Sports United NV (SSU), which belongs to the Signa Group of the Austrian investor René Benko, has now also filed for bankruptcy. This was announced by the Bielefeld insolvency court, and the lawyer Christian Gerloff from Munich was appointed as the provisional insolvency administrator, as the “Handelsblatt” first reported.
Following Tennis-Point’s bankruptcy filing last week, SSU had already announced the impending bankruptcy filings of other companies from the SSU group, including the parent company. The main reason for the insolvency applications is the insufficient financial resources following the termination of an equity commitment from Signa Holding GmbH. This move came after Signa Holding, owned by René Benko, withdrew its €150 million financing commitment to SSU. Signa owns, among other things, the renowned Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof retail chain in Germany.
Signa Sports United insolvent: Danger for around 80 online shops
After the bankruptcy, Tennis Point was unable to process returns for a few days.
Image: Screenshot: tennis-point.de
Interestingly, Tennis-Point is based in Herzebrock-Clarholz, Westphalia, while SSU NV is registered in the Netherlands but has its operational headquarters in Berlin. It is currently unknown why the insolvency applications were filed in Bielefeld.
SSU, an e-commerce company, went public on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021, reaching a peak market value of $3.2 billion. Trading in SSU securities on the New York Stock Exchange was suspended on October 11th. The SSU Group includes a number of online shops, including Fahrrad.de, Bikester, Probikeshop, Campz, Addnature, TennisPro and Outfitter.
The bankruptcy filings of Tennis-Point and SSU raise significant questions about the future of e-commerce and will undoubtedly have an impact on the market. Developments in the coming months will be closely monitored as they could have a significant impact on the e-commerce industry.
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