Top 10 Worst Biz Deals
John Snow , chairman of Cerberus Capital Management.
Rebecca Cook / Reuters
#5. Cerberus Abandons United Rentals
Having agreed to a $4 billion takeover of the construction-equipment rental outfit in July, buyout firm Cerberus was shocked — shocked! — to discover that funding this high-priced deal might be a stretch, what with the credit market tightened like a noose around private equity's neck. Cerberus, which agreed to give United a $100 million break-up fee — a standard provision in such a deal — wants to pay the money and walk. United Rentals won't let Cerberus go. The parties are suing each other.
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