THE WHAT? Bed, Bath & Beyond has managed to swerve Chapter 11 proceedings with a last-minute equity deal, according to a report published by Bloomberg. The ailing US retailer is said to have reminded investors of the human cost of its collapse in order to convince them to cough up more cash.

THE DETAILS Cash will be raised through the sale of convertible preferred shares and warrants via anchor investor Hudson Bay Capital. The target set is US$1 billion and proceeds will be used to pay down debt and balance inventory.

THE WHY? Doubt still lingers over whether the deal will be enough to save the US retailer with shares down 49 percent early last week and weak retail demand. Bed, Bath & Beyond has warned in a securities filing that trading is highly speculative.