Before Bezos Fight, Enquirer Publisher AMI Faced Steep Losses

  • AMI had negative net worth as of Sept. 30, documents show
  • Losses spurred borrowing, leading to more than $1 billion debt
Jeff Bezos vs. the National Enquirer
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The publisher of the National Enquirer, currently under attack by Amazon.com Inc. founder Jeff Bezos, has been facing steep financial losses that have left the once-loyal keeper of Donald Trump’s secrets with more than $1 billion in debt and a negative net worth.

The closely held American Media Inc. -- led by the president’s longtime friend, David Pecker -- recorded a $31.5 million loss in the six months that ended Sept. 30, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg. That marked an improvement over the previous year, but nonetheless brought the company’s total losses over the last 5 1/2 fiscal years to $256 million. AMI owed about $203 million more than its assets were worth.