Josh Harris, the Apollo Global Management Inc. co-founder who left the company last year, has sold more than $100 million of shares in the private equity firm over the past three weeks as the deal he’s leading to buy the NFL’s Washington Commanders takes shape.
(Bloomberg) — Josh Harris, the Apollo Global Management Inc.
co-founder who left the company last year, has sold more than $100 million of shares in the private equity firm over the past three weeks as the deal he’s leading to buy the NFL’s Washington Commanders takes shape.
He’s been offloading shares on a near-daily basis since April 17, a few days after he reached a $6 billion deal to buy the Commanders.
The sales, which have happened nine separate times, total almost $106 million, including $11.6 million on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg calculations.
A representative for Harris declined to comment.
The cash raised so far from selling Apollo shares wouldn’t come close to meeting Harris’s needs for the deal.
His group proposed paying $5.8 billion when the deal closes and the remainder over two years to current owner Dan Snyder, according to a report in The Athletic. It would be the largest amount ever paid for a US professional sports team.
Read more: Harris’s $6 Billion Commanders Deal Supercharges Sports Empire
As lead owner, Harris must take a minimum 30% stake in the team.
According to NFL rules, buyers can borrow a maximum of $1.1 billion secured by the franchise, leaving Harris to put up more than $1.4 billion in cash.
But he’s aiming to raise additional funds using debt secured by some of his other sports teams, according to The Athletic.
He owns stakes in the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers, NHL’s New Jersey Devils and English Premier League’s Crystal Palace.
The deal needs to be approved by the league’s other owners who meet later this month.
Harris has a net worth of $7.7 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
He announced in 2021 that he was stepping back from day-to-day duties at Apollo and left its board last year. He now runs 26North Partners, an alternative asset manager with more than $10 billion under management.
–With assistance from Allison McNeely.
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