Michael Bloomberg May Buy Financial Times
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is weighing up whether to make a bid for The Financial Times Group, which includes the namesake paper and a half interest in The Economist magazine, the New York Times reported, citing three people close to the mayor.
Pearson Plc, the publisher of FT, is about to lose two of its top executives, raising speculation the paper could be up for sale.
Analysts value The Financial Times Group at about $1.2 billion, well within the reach of Bloomberg LP, which in 2011 had revenue of $7.6 billion, the paper said. ()
One media banker with knowledge of the company expects the paper to be sold around early next year, the New York Times said.
Factions within Bloomberg LP have argued that it would be smarter to buy a digital property, pointing to the website LinkedIn as an example.
Daniel Doctoroff, a confidant of Bloomberg and the chief executive of the company, is said to be particularly skeptical about the value of buying a newspaper, the paper said.
A spokesman for the mayor declined to comment to the New York Times on his conversations about the Financial Times paper.
A spokesman for Mayor Bloomberg and Pearson Group could not immediately be reached for comment by Reuters outside of regular U.S. business hours.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
