- In 2000, Amazon hired Warren Jenson, a fiscally conservative executive from Delta Airlines, as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
- Jenson decided that Amazon needed a “stronger cash position” in case suppliers got nervous and asked to be paid more quickly.
- In February (2000), Amazon raised $672 million selling convertible bonds to European investors.
- Market volatility forced Amazon to offer a generous interest rate (6.9%).
- Less than a month later, the dot-com bubble burst.
- “Without that cushion, Amazon would have certainly face the prospect of insolvency”.
