Last month Federated and Peter Lytle's business Development Group signed a non-binding letter of intent to explore purchasing Fingerhut, which employs 47 hundred people in Minnesota. The group was expected to respond in early March, but received at least one extension. But with no committed financing for the Business Development group Federated Spokeswoman Carol Sanger says it's time to open the process to the dozen or so other parties that have expressed interest in parts of Fingerhut.