"In recent weeks, Mr. Otto has been questioned by the Securities and Exchange Commission and has been struggling to negotiate a deal with creditors. Both the SEC and creditors want to know why Mr. Otto kept the company from filing quarterly financial statements for 15 months prior to filing for bankruptcy protection last year. The creditors are intent on taking over Spiegel unless he pays them more than $1 billion.

How did Mr. Otto end up under the microscope? The 60-year-old billionaire and his family own 89 percent of Spiegel, and Mr. Otto is its sole voting shareholder. But the sliver Mr. Otto doesn't control is owned by U.S. shareholders, opening Spiegel's practices to scrutiny by the SEC. "