Those self same sources count on Chord will safe a further $1 billion to $2 billion in investible capital earlier than the spherical closes – taking its whole elevate to between $3 billion and $4 billion.
The spherical – which covers the interval Chord launched with UMG final 12 months up to now – is known to have been fuelled by fairness investments from a number of household places of work and pension funds throughout Europe and the US.
Common Music Group has maintained its ~26% share in Chord, contributing an incremental EUR €30 million funding into the car earlier this 12 months, UMG has confirmed. Dundee Companions stays the controlling shareholder in Chord.
Just like the funding capital raised by Warner and Bain Capital’s new JV final month, Chord’s $2 billion+ funding is known to contain a debt part.
One among Chord’s new buyers has at present (August 14) been confirmed as Searchlight Capital Companions, a world funding agency with places of work in New York, London, Miami, and Toronto and greater than $18 billion in property below administration. MBW understands that Searchlight has contributed $400 million to Chord in fairness funding.
“Searchlight seems to be ahead to contributing to Chord’s subsequent chapter of progress and worth creation for each its artists and current buyers.”
Darren Glatt, Searchlight
Commenting on the deal, Darren Glatt, Associate at Searchlight, mentioned: “The Chord crew have constructed an extremely robust and diversified platform on the forefront of music funding and developed Chord into the specified dwelling for the works and legacies of the world’s premier artists.
“Searchlight seems to be ahead to contributing to Chord’s subsequent chapter of progress and worth creation for each its artists and current buyers.”
“Searchlight’s experience, community and skill to meaningfully contribute towards increasing Chord’s premier IP portfolio make Searchlight a great strategic associate for our Firm’s subsequent chapter.”
Sam Hendel, Dundee Companions / Chord
Sam Hendel, Dundee Companions’ Managing Principal and Co-Founding father of Chord, added: “Searchlight’s experience, community and skill to meaningfully contribute towards increasing Chord’s premier IP portfolio make Searchlight a great strategic associate for our Firm’s subsequent chapter.
“We’re thrilled to welcome them into the fold and stay up for pursuing the more and more thrilling alternative set inside at present’s music panorama collectively.”
Chord has been “intentionally quiet” when it comes to saying offers over the previous 12 months, say sources, however some nine-figure agreements have leaked, together with a Morgan Wallen acquisition reported in Could.
That deal noticed Huge Loud, the Nashville-based file label dwelling to the nation celebrity, promote a minority stake in Wallen’s grasp recording catalog to Chord for north of USD $200 million, based on MBW’s sources, though monetary particulars weren’t formally disclosed.
Chord Music Companions was based in 2021 by funding corporations KKR and Dundee Companions. Along with its curiosity within the Morgan Wallen catalog, it has constructed a portfolio that features music from The Weeknd, Lorde, David Guetta, and extra.
That deal, which noticed Chord valued at USD $1.85 billion, resulted in KKR exiting its place within the firm.
Beneath the strategic partnership between Dundee Companions and Common Music Group, Chord’s music publishing rights are administered via Common Music Publishing Group (UMPG) and recorded music via UMG’s Virgin Music Group (VMG).
At the moment’s information arrives a few weeks after Common Music Group’s Chief Working Officer Boyd Muir commented on the progress of the Chord funding car throughout UMG’s Q2 earnings name on the finish of July.
“We additionally continued our long-term strategic funding within the enterprise. We paid EUR €149 million for catalog acquisitions within the interval, about half of that are catalogs that will likely be moved into the Chord car within the coming months,” Muir advised buyers on the decision.
He added: “Chord is efficiently elevating capital and constructing a powerful deal pipeline. The construction is working precisely as we envisioned – enabling us to maneuver shortly to accumulate high-quality catalogs, with out important capital allocation over time.”
Muir additionally confirmed that “to keep up our share of possession within the car, we additionally made a EUR €30 million incremental fairness funding into the enterprise within the first half of the 12 months.Music Enterprise Worldwide
