The Dragaeran equivalent of declaring bankruptcy, a businessman will submit a surrender of debts claim to the Dragaeran Empire in exchange for protection from the claims of creditors.
Similar to how bankruptcy works in our world, a crafty merchant (such as Vonnith) may be able to avoid seizure of personal assets while in surrender of debts by owning a business under an assumed name, or acting as a pointer.
This is the same concept as that of limited liability.