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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Thomas Cook owner in bankruptcy | Thomas Cook owner in bankruptcy |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Germany's Arcandor, which owns 52% of Thomas Cook, has filed for bankruptcy protection after the German government rejected a request for loan guarantees. | Germany's Arcandor, which owns 52% of Thomas Cook, has filed for bankruptcy protection after the German government rejected a request for loan guarantees. |
| Arcandor, which employs about 70,000 people, had sought 650m euros ($930m; £561m) of guarantees because about 600m euros of its loans need refinancing. | |
| Arcandor said its bankruptcy filing covered German retailer Karstadt and its mail-order businesses. | Arcandor said its bankruptcy filing covered German retailer Karstadt and its mail-order businesses. |
| However, it added that Thomas Cook "will remain unaffected". | However, it added that Thomas Cook "will remain unaffected". |
| Last week, a Thomas Cook spokeswoman had said the travel company was "completely ring-fenced" from Arcandor and that the two companies were operationally and financially distinct. | |
| Shares in Thomas Cook in London rose 6.9% to 229 pence. | |
| Crisis fund | Crisis fund |
| Chancellor Angela Merkel had insisted that no state aid would be available unless unless the company put together a viable plan and its owners and banks put in more money. | Chancellor Angela Merkel had insisted that no state aid would be available unless unless the company put together a viable plan and its owners and banks put in more money. |
| The German government has been reluctant to help Arcandor because the company was in trouble before the economic crisis. | The German government has been reluctant to help Arcandor because the company was in trouble before the economic crisis. |
| The government has a 100bn euro fund to provide temporary loans for firms hit by last year's financial crisis and its aftermath, but this does not apply to companies that first got into difficulties before 1 July 2008. | The government has a 100bn euro fund to provide temporary loans for firms hit by last year's financial crisis and its aftermath, but this does not apply to companies that first got into difficulties before 1 July 2008. |
| Arcandor has been in talks with rival Metro on a merger of their department stores, as well as appealing to the government for help. | Arcandor has been in talks with rival Metro on a merger of their department stores, as well as appealing to the government for help. |