Francesca's filed for bankruptcy twice in six years — the second time was final
Women's fashion retailer Francesca's survived a 2020 bankruptcy, but a second filing in 2026 liquidated all 450 stores and left vendors owed $250M.
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3,222 PUBLISHED CASES · REGULARLY UPDATEDGome’s founder was China’s richest man — then prison, and the company never recovered
Gome was China’s largest electronics retailer until its founder’s arrest triggered a leadership crisis the company never recovered from.
Read the caseGoogle laid off 12,000 — the first mass layoff that shattered its reputation as a family
Alphabet cut 6% of its workforce in January 2023, the first mass layoff in Google's 25-year history, shattering its reputation as the world's best employer.
Read the caseGoPro created the action camera market — then couldn't escape it
GoPro went from an $86 stock to exploring a sale at $1.33, undone by a single-product trap, a failed drone, and a media pivot that never arrived
Read the caseHarvey Norman advertised interest-free payments while hiding the credit card
Harvey Norman and Latitude promoted 60 no-deposit payments — but hid a credit card and extra fees; the Federal Court imposed A$55M in penalties.
Read the caseICON plc's revenue was overstated for years — the market found out in one day
ICON delayed its 2025 results after an internal probe found revenue overstated by less than 2% in 2023 and 2024. The stock lost 39% in a single session.
Read the caseILOVEYOU virus cost $10B - creator walked as Philippines had no hacking law
A simple VBScript email worm with 'ILOVEYOU' in the subject line infected 10% of all internet-connected computers in 2000. The creator walked free.
Read the caseIndiGo's schedule collapse grounded thousands — and then the CEO resigned
A pilot scheduling failure forced IndiGo to cancel thousands of flights in December 2025. Three months later, CEO Pieter Elbers was gone.
Read the caseLavazza called its capsules compostable — but only in a factory, not a bin
Lavazza advertised Eco Caps as 'compostable.' The ASA ruled the claim was misleading because the pods need industrial composting, not home composting.
Read the caseMarconi bet the company on telecoms, then gave creditors 99.5% of the reset
GEC sold its diversification and became Marconi. Net debt reached £3.17B, shares fell 95%, and creditors took 99.5%.
Read the caseMariella Burani Fashion Group went from IPO to fraudulent bankruptcy in 10 years
An Italian fashion and jewelry group that went public in 2000, expanded aggressively, and collapsed in 2010 with a €700M hole and its founders in prison.
Read the caseNew Horizon Health was a HK$40B cancer screening star — then fraud claims killed it
A once-hyped Hong Kong biotech that promised early cancer detection was delisted in 2025 after fraud claims and a winding-up petition.
Read the caseNidec's founder pressure drove $1B in improper accounting — and a Nikkei ejection
A third-party probe found systemic improper bookkeeping at Nidec, traced to founder pressure. The TSE removed it from the Nikkei 225 and TOPIX.
Read the caseNorlys sold 15% insurance discounts that non-customers could get at 12%
The Danish utility exaggerated the extra value of partner insurance discounts on its website, then paid a DKK 3M fine.
Read the caseOlympus hid $1.7B in losses for 20 years — then the CEO who exposed it was fired
Olympus hid investment losses since the 1990s through inflated acquisitions and fake fees, until a CEO blew the whistle and was sacked.
Read the casePhones 4u sold 26 phones a minute — then the networks cut it off
Britain's largest independent mobile retailer collapsed overnight when EE and Vodafone terminated supply, leaving 1,700 people jobless.
Read the caseRapido promised an auto in five minutes — then had to refund the guarantee
India's CCPA fined Rapido ₹10 lakh after its guaranteed-auto and cashback ads hid conditions that changed what customers would receive.
Read the caseRobinhood enabled free trading — until the free traders broke the system
Robinhood halted GameStop buying mid-mania, sparking outrage. The IPO flopped, regulators fined it $135M+, and customer trust collapsed.
Read the caseSam's Club stocked familiar snack brands — and members asked what their fee was for
Chinese members challenged Sam's assortment after exclusive versions of familiar mass-market snacks appeared while favored products disappeared.
Read the caseShunfeng, once the world's largest solar manufacturer, was wound up for HK$289M
Shunfeng bought Suntech out of bankruptcy to become a solar giant. The debt never stopped compounding — the HK High Court wound it up in 2025.
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