Why Amazon may not be to blame for retail closures

A 2017 analysis by Newsday found that of the 43 large retail or supermarket companies that had filed for bankruptcy since the start of 2015, more than 40 percent were owned by private-equity firms. And Washington, D.C.-based business advisory firm FTI Consulting found that two-thirds of the retailers that filed for Chapter 11 in 2016 and 2017 were backed by private equity.

Many private-equity firms contribute as little as 1 percent of the equity needed for a leveraged buyout, and skim fees and interest throughout the deal. If things go well, they get a huge cut of the profit when they exit. If not, they have little to lose.