In what can be described as a massive shake-up within the global tech sphere, Verizon has agreed to sell two of its media arms – Yahoo and AOL – for $5 billion.
Private equity firm Apollo Global Management is the new buyer.
The corporate carveout will allow Verizon Media to aggressively pursue growth areas and stands to benefit its employees, advertisers, publishing partners and nearly 900 million monthly active users worldwide.
“We are excited to be joining forces with Apollo. The past two quarters of double-digit growth have demonstrated our ability to transform our media ecosystem. With Apollo’s sector expertise and strategic insight, Yahoo will be well positioned to capitalize on market opportunities, media and transaction experience and continue to grow our full stack digital advertising platform. This transition will help to accelerate our growth for the long- term success of the company.”
”Guru Gowrappan, CEO, Verizon Media
Under the terms of the agreement, Verizon will receive $4.25 billion in cash, preferred interests of $750 million and retain a 10% stake in Verizon Media.
The transaction includes the assets of Verizon Media, including its brands and businesses.
The transaction is subject to satisfaction of certain closing conditions and expected to close in the second half of 2021.
Delight
For the new owners Apollo Global Management, this represents a massive corporate win.
In his reaction, Reed Rayman, Private Equity Partner at Apollo, said:
“We are thrilled to help unlock the tremendous potential of Yahoo and its unparalleled collection of brands.We have enormous respect and admiration for the great work and progress that the entire organization has made over the last several years, and we look forward to working with Guru, his talented team, and our partners at Verizon to accelerate Yahoo’s growth in its next chapter.”
LionTree served as lead financial advisor to and will invest alongside the Apollo Funds, bringing its global strategic relationships to Yahoo as the company continues to accelerate growth and pursue strategic investments in key verticals and product areas.