The Tobacco Company of America has filed for bankruptcy.
The nation’s largest tobacco company, which was once the envy of the tobacco industry, has filed to declare bankruptcy.
In December, the company announced that it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The company has filed a bankruptcy petition with the US bankruptcy court, which will determine the fate of the company.
“We believe the filing of a Chapter 11 petition in a bankruptcy court is a significant step forward in our restructuring plans, which include the elimination of approximately $4 billion in debt, the liquidation of its business and assets, and the reduction of the Company’s assets to a net value of $6.5 billion,” the company said in its filing.
The filing, however, does not address the legal challenges to the company’s reorganization plan.
The bankruptcy petition states that the company will be unable to make any future payments to shareholders.
The Tobacco Corporation of America filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in October, after more than a decade of operating under a series of costly and controversial restructurings.
The restructuring was designed to bring in more profit from its massive tobacco empire, which is estimated to generate more than $4 trillion in annual revenue.
The tobacco company has struggled with a string of legal battles, including the recent Supreme Court ruling that found its plan to sell off tobacco assets amounted to unlawful gambling.
The ruling came as the tobacco company faced the possibility of being forced to pay more than half a billion dollars to the tobacco companies largest shareholders, including Phillip Morris, Reynolds American, and Altria, in a plan to turn the company around.
In addition to its bankruptcy filing, the Tobacco Company has been in negotiations with its creditors to restructure its debts.
The sale of tobacco assets will include $200 million to $500 million in cash, according to Reuters.
Reuters reported that the sale of the Tobacco Corp. of America is set to take place over the next year.
Reuters also reported that former U.S. President Donald Trump has also been named as an investor in the Tobacco company.
The announcement of the sale came on the same day that Altria Inc. and Philip Morris announced they were forming a new partnership to create a $1 billion tobacco product and marketing company.