SoftBank Nears Deal to Buy Fortress Investment Group for More Than $3 Billion
February 14 2017 - 6:25PM
Dow Jones News
By Liz Hoffman, Jenny Strasburg and Sarah Krouse
SoftBank Group is nearing a deal to buy asset manager Fortress
Investment Group LLC for more than $3 billion, according to people
familiar with the matter, in a departure from the Japanese giant's
technology-focused strategy.
Fortress, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange,
manages about $70 billion in assets and invests in real estate,
credit and private equity. The firm was founded in 1998.
Alternative managers like Fortress with a mix of businesses that
span private equity, real estate and hedge funds, have emerged as
appealing targets because they are able to charge higher fees and
typically require long-term investments. Revenue at traditional
money-management firms has been squeezed in recent years by the
growing popularity of low-cost index-tracking funds.
Foreign investors, particularly from Asia, have been shopping
for financial-services investments in the U.S. in recent years.
Singapore-based Shanda Group, which bought a stake in Legg Mason
Inc. last year, has said it plans to increase that position from
10% to 15%, for example. Meanwhile, Japan's Dai-ichi Life Insurance
Co. invested in Janus Capital Group Inc. for the first time in
2012. After U.K.-based Henderson Group PLC's deal to buy Janus is
complete, the firms have said Dai-ichi will own a 9% stake in the
combined entity that will increase to 15%.
Write to Liz Hoffman at liz.hoffman@wsj.com, Jenny Strasburg at
jenny.strasburg@wsj.com and Sarah Krouse at
sarah.krouse@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 14, 2017 18:10 ET (23:10 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Simplify Exchang (NYSE:FIG)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
Simplify Exchang (NYSE:FIG)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024