Bankruptcy-bound Vice Media will reportedly be bought out of Chapter 11 by investors who include billionaire George Soros for about $400 million — after the Brooklyn-based company was once valued at nearly $6 billion.
The cash-strapped media company has been prepping for the bankruptcy filing after failing to find a buyer over the past year, The Post reported last week.
The company’s post-bankruptcy arrangement will be to sell itself to the Soros Fund Management — founded by the 92-year-old left-wing activist — and Fortress Investment Group in a deal that would value the once-high-flying Vice at just $400 million, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
The move could spell a return to the spotlight for bombastic Vice Media co-founder Shane Smith, who held the role of CEO in the company’s heyday, including being valued at $5.7 billion in 2017.
Reps for Vice Media, Soros Fund Management and Fortress did not immediately respond for comment.
In February, Vice CEO Nancy Dubuc left the company after a five-year run. She was replaced by longtime execs Bruce Dixon and Hozefa Lokhandwala as co-CEOs.
According to the Journal, under the proposed sale, senior lender Fortress “plans to find a role for Vice co-founder Smith,” who is executive chairman and previously served as CEO prior to Dubuc’s hire. It is unclear what role Smith would take.
Smith moved out of the CEO role — and the spotlight — after a series of critical reports revealed that Vice was built on bluffs and smoke and mirrors by the exec, who reportedly oversaw a toxic work environment for female staff.
The bankruptcy and sale would “wipe out” most of Vice’s other shareholders, including TPG Group and James Murdoch, who invested in the company via his Lupa Systems investment firm, the Journal said. The Murdoch family is a major shareholder in The Post’s parent, News Corp.
Recently, Vice has been unable to pay many of its vendors and secured a $30 million “lifeline” from Fortress in late March, the publication previously reported.
Two weeks ago, the company said it was closing Vice World News, a global reporting initiative that covered world conflict and human rights abuses — which the news outlet was known for under Smith.
Vice Media Group’s main businesses include the Vice Studios film and TV production unit, the Vice TV television network, Vice News, and creative agency Virtue. The company also owns female-focused website Refinery29, London-based Pulse Films and i-D, a digital and print style publication covering fashion, culture and design.
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