The WME-IMG agency is close to a deal with another “blue chip” investor and is set to report significantly improved financial figures for 2015, according to US magazine the Hollywood Reporter.
WME-IMG last week announced that Japanese teleco SoftBank Group had invested $250m (€227.3m) to become a strategic partner in the agency – a move that values WME-IMG at $5.5bn.
SoftBank joined the current strategic investor, US private equity firm Silver Lake. The agency was valued at around $800m when Silver Lake first bought its 30 per cent stake in 2010.
In an article containing a wide-ranging interview with Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell, co-chief executives of WME-IMG, the Hollywood Reporter, citing a company source, said another major investor is nearing a partnership deal.
It added that when WME-IMG reports its 2015 financials to its lenders in early April, it will show revenue and profits are up considerably from 2014. Management EBITDA, the company's internal measure of profitability, will reportedly rise more than 30 per cent year-on-year to $405m versus $303m in 2014.
Commenting on the SoftBank deal, Whitesell said: “There's going to be more M&A (mergers and acquisitions) opportunity, not less. So we thought having more capital would be good. Everybody always talks about (the company) going public or not. We don't ever want to be in a position where we feel forced, like we have to or need to go.”
Concerning the choice of SoftBank, he added: “We feel like their footprint in Asia – I can't go into a lot, but essentially what they want to do with content in that part of the world given their massive mobile footprint there – is really strategic. Ari and I know Nikesh (Arora, SoftBank president and chief operating officer) from his Google days, so we have a good relationship with him. His Rolodex, relationships, expertise and judgment would be good.”