Conseco May File for Bankruptcy UPDATE: Conseco Inc., the insurance and finance company whose shares have traded below $1 for the past two weeks, will probably file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection or reach a bankruptcy deal preapproved by creditors, Dow Jones Newswires said, citing analysts. “We are increasingly skeptical that it will be able to avoid seeking formal protection from its creditors,” Salomon Smith Barney analyst Colin Devine was quoted as saying. Conseco, which has a $300 million bond issue due on Oct. 15, has said it probably can’t meet all its debt obligations due by the end of next year, according to Dow. Conseco spokesman Mark Lubbers had no comment.(Star Tribune) Conseco is the primary sponsor for the #14 A.J. Foyt Racing team in the Cup series, supposedly the deal runs thru 2003, no idea how this will effect the sponsorship, but when Kmart filed, they were gone pretty fast.(8-8-2002) UPDATE: Conseco also [see full story about their other sports sponsorships] is the primary sponsor of a NASCAR team owned by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A.J. Foyt. The company has never revealed what it is paying for its sponsorship, but it is thought to be about $5 million a year. “There’s another year left on our NASCAR sponsorship and that, too, is an important branding opportunity,” Conseco spokesman Mark Lubbers said. The team has struggled since its inception in 2000. Foyt has employed five different drivers, but none has posted a victory in 80 Winston Cup races. Mike Wallace finished last in Sunday’s Brickyard 400, crashing on the 11th lap. “We’ve got to win some races, both for Conseco and for A.J. Foyt,” Foyt told The Star last week. Team spokesperson Anne Fornoro declined to comment Friday.(Indianapolis Star)(8-10-2002)
