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First Brands collapses, Argentina’s $20B lifeline, and why failure wins

Argentina
First Brands
Kawhi Leonard
Slow Horses
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Episode 17 covers three major stories: the spectacular collapse of auto parts giant First Brands, Argentina’s controversial $20 billion U.S. bailout, and new developments in the Kawhi Leonard endorsement scandal.

First Brands Bankruptcy: How a $6 Billion Auto Parts Empire Collapsed in Weeks

Hosts Jason Sanjana and Kevin Eckhardt open the episode with First Brands, the autoparts empire behind Fram filters and Autolite spark plugs that filed for Chapter 11 after a failed refinancing exposed massive problems in its financing structure.

Skylar Chen, Senior Reporter at Octus, joins the show to walk through how a $6 billion capital structure collapsed in weeks. The conversation covers the August Jefferies refinancing that failed to clear, the missing quality of earnings report that spooked investors, and the off-balance-sheet SPVs that hid billions in inventory and receivables financing.

Argentina Bailout: President Milei Secures $20 Billion From U.S. Treasury

The episode pivots to Argentina, where President Javier Milei secured a $20 billion swap facility from the U.S. Treasury after campaigning on libertarian economics and fiscal discipline.

Jason and Kevin discuss the absurd optics: the U.S. government is shut down, national parks aren’t emptying trash cans, but Argentina gets $20 billion. Meanwhile, Argentina immediately dropped export taxes on soybeans, making them more competitive against American farmers.

The hosts explore reports that hedge fund manager Rob Citron, a close associate of Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, had been buying Argentine bonds all year. Kevin describes it as “the greatest sovereign swindle in modern finance.”

Kawhi Leonard Aspiration Partners Update: NBA Investigation Intensifies

Producer Tanya Hubbard’s favorite segment returns with new developments. Kawhi Leonard publicly denied having a no-show job with Aspiration Partners at Clippers media day, saying he performed the required services and that Aspiration still owes him $7 million.

The discussion covers:

  • The NBA’s investigation using Wachtell Lipton to examine potential salary cap violations
  • Kawhi’s legal bind between bankruptcy court and the NBA investigation
  • Whether admitting he did minimal work helps or hurts his case
  • The $28 million question: was this an endorsement or a salary cap workaround?

Slow Horses: What a British Spy Series Reveals About Institutional Failure

The episode wraps with a discussion of Apple TV’s Slow Horses, the British spy series about MI5’s failures and rejects. Jason and Kevin draw parallels between the show’s incompetent headquarters staff and the polished professionals who failed to spot First Brands’ problems.

The conversation explores how the show uses espionage as a vehicle to examine institutional dysfunction, credentialism versus competence, and why the people who look the part often advance while those doing the actual work get sidelined.

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Produced and edited by two-time Emmy Award-winning producer Tanya Hubbard

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