Dog deals

For every winning deal there's a loser, and investors were not shy in nominating their pick of the worst deals of 2005. For one portfolio manager in New York, the year started badly with a toxic refinancing deal for radioactive waste disposal firm Envirocare in Utah. "This deal was done in January and then recapped just six weeks later, with the bank debt at 100% of the original capital structure from January," says the un-named investor. The sponsors then took out all their cash plus a dividend