BOULDER - Private-equity firm Kachi Partners is offering $4.335 million to buy the bankrupt Tully's Coffee chain in Seattle, according to Washington bankruptcy court documents.

Boulder-based Kachi Partners has signed an asset purchase agreement that has been accepted by TC Global Inc. doing business as Tully's, said Gayle Bush, a debtor attorney involved in the case.

Kachi would pay $1.25 million up front in the transaction, according to court documents. It would assume certain company liabilities, including $1 million in gift cards, $1.6 million in lease contracts and $200,000 in employee vacation accrual, according to court documents.

The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year, although no date has been set, Bush said. Kachi Partners made the offer in advance of a scheduled bankruptcy court auction.

Kachi spokesman Shawn Hallinan referred all questions about the purchase to the bankruptcy court documents. The firm invests in distressed middle-market companies and other "special situations," according to its website.

Tully's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October. Its coffee-shop chain operates 47 corporate-owned stores in Washington and California. It has closed 19 other unprofitable coffee shops since filing for bankruptcy, according to published reports. The company also has agreements with franchises and grocery stores to sell its coffee in various forms. It was founded in 1992.