eTrain Internet training company files bankruptcy

Internet training company eTrain joined the burgeoning ranks of failed e-commerce companies with a filing late on Wednesday for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Pryor/eTrain Holdings LLC, of Overland Park, Kansas, plans to liquidate, according to papers filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. The closely held company, which claims one million paid students and describes itself as “the largest provider of training globally,” listed assets and debts of less than $50,000 each.

There was no explanation in court papers about why the bankruptcy filing was necessary. Claims of the 20 largest unsecured creditors are for trade debt and range from $63,000 to a $3.7 million claim by R.R. Donnelly Inc. of Chicago.

Equity holders based in Kansas are Thayer/Patriot Education Funding LLC, 73.0 percent; Educational Holding LLC, 8.8 percent; and Michael Hays, 4.9 percent. Holders in Missouri are Fred Pryor, 7.2 percent, and Philip Love, 6.0 percent.

Seven affiliates also filed for bankruptcy, court papers say.

The company’s website, www.pryor.com, says eTrain offers courses that include professional development, financial skills, and stress management.

Fred Pryor could not be reached for comment. A woman answering the company phone said a reporter’s call was “the first I’ve heard” of any bankruptcy filing.