(Bloomberg) — TGI Friday’s Inc. is talking to potential buyers, a company lawyer said Monday, and revealed its revenues were “significant” when it lost control of the assets it used to secure $375 million in bonds sold in 2017.

The company, which filed for bankruptcy Saturday, said the parties had expressed interest in purchasing part or all of TGI Friday’s business, company attorney Chris Dickerson said during of the chain’s first bankruptcy hearing in Texas. The names of the potential buyers were not disclosed during the hearing and could not immediately be known.

TGI Friday’s is “pretty far along” in negotiations with one particular party, who the restaurant hopes will agree to acquire the business as a hunter horse bidder, Dickerson said. A stalking horse offer would set a floor price for TGI Friday’s assets and be subject to better bids in a possible Chapter 11 auction.

During Monday’s hearing, attorneys also discussed TGI’s 2017 Friday bond sale, which was structured as a so-called global securitization. The bonds are secured by the chain’s brand, licensing agreements, future franchise agreements, royalties and other revenue sources, according to court documents.

TGI Friday’s lost management control of these entities in September, and they are now managed by FTI Consulting Inc. As a result, TGI Friday’s said in court documents that it lost “a significant portion of its revenue stream » because she would no longer receive the benefits of paying restaurant royalties.

More franchised restaurant chains are turning to global securitization to raise debt more cheaply, but this structure has rarely been tested in bankruptcy courts. The special purpose companies formed as part of the bond transaction are not part of the Chapter 11 chain case.

Alexander Woolverton, an attorney representing FTI, said during Monday’s hearing that the securitization entities “do not agree with the narrative” outlined in TGI’s bankruptcy filings Friday. The facts in TGI’s filings Friday are incomplete, Woolverton argued, adding that securitization entities could provide conflicting facts in future proceedings.

At Monday’s hearing, TGI Friday’s also won court permission to continue paying salaries and other ordinary business expenses as it begins operating under Chapter 11. The chain has already closed some locations and said its U.S. sales were down about 15% over the past year. as it grappled with rising costs and a shift in consumer preference for faster, limited-service dining options.

The case is TGI Friday’s Inc., case number 24-80069, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas.

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