The assets listed to be auctioned include six entities operated by Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. (Diamond Comic Distributors, Diamond Book Distributors, Alliance Game Distributors, Collectible Grading Authority, FandomWorld, and FreeComicBookDay.com); three businesses operated by Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles, LLC (Diamond Select, Gentle Giant Ltd., Ironguard Supplies); and two companies, Comic Exporter, Inc. and Comic Holdings, Inc., that each own 50% of Diamond UK.
The proposed auction timeline (see "Sales on Fast Track") provides that bids for any assets are to be filed by March 19, with a live auction among companies that have made qualifying bids to be held on March 24, and closings to take place by April 10.
Raymond James, Diamond’s investment bank, has been working to sell the assets since September 30, 2024, and has contacted over 160 companies. There are currently 30 companies under NDA (out of a total of around 50 that signed NDAs since the beginning of the process), "…a substantial number of which are active."
Filings also lay out the offer from Canadian company Universal Distribution to buy Alliance Game Distributors and Diamond UK. Universal is owned by Angelo Exarhakos and his family, along with a holding company of the Jim Pattison Group, which acquired a share of Universal in 2022 and is presumably providing the financing for the deal.
Universal’s bid for Alliance provides for the payment of Critical Vendors (not publicly listed) in full (typically in order to maintain the value of the asset), and the acquisition of all major assets of the company. It does not provide for the acquisition of any other liabilities, which will presumably end up in the pool of unsecured creditors to be paid out of any available moneys after the auction process and the payment of fees and the secured creditor(s).
Universal’s bid also provides that if it buys Alliance, it will take over Diamond UK, paying for the value of Diamond UK’s assets (receivables, inventory, etc.), less liabilities (money owed publishers, etc.), less £200,000. While Diamond UK itself did not file bankruptcy, the two entities that own Diamond UK were part of the filing.
To exceed the Universal bid, other bidders for Alliance will have to bid at least $40,865,000, or the value of the Universal bid plus a 3% break-up fee, plus Universal’s expenses (capped at 0.5% of the sale price), plus $500,000.
The proposed bidding rules still have to be approved by the court, but key constituencies appear to be supporting this format, which seems likely to be approved.
