What does it take to inflict damage on some of the world's biggest financial institutions?

Well, as it turns out, one secret of businessman with a track record of battling creditors in court.

And it all starts with a tip.

I was having breakfast.

And I got a message from a contact who said they had heard of this interesting company that was potentially having issues.

That's the FT's Ortenza Aliye.

The tip centered around a huge auto parts company, which is a bit out of left field.

She's the FT's banking editor.

But lots of big financial firms had lent this company money, and now it was running into trouble.

So Ortenza mentions it to our colleague Robert Smith.

He's the FT's corporate finance editor, and he reaches out to some colleague Robert Smith. He's the F.T.'s corporate finance editor.

And he reaches out to some of his contacts.

For a while, he doesn't hear anything back.

And then in August, Rob gets a call.

I was sitting there with sort of an incredibly experienced,

incredible person telling me that one of the biggest companies in its

sector in America was a ticking time bomb.

The company we're talking about is called First Brands Group.

Not exactly a household name, but it's a business with a collection of factories from

Pennsylvania to California, ones that make spark plugs, break components, and windshield wipers.

It's an auto parts supplier, basically, and it's from the Rust Belt of the United States.

So not typically the kind of company that would cause the upper echelons of Wall Street to lose sleepover.

...