The latest developments surrounding Mark Walter's empire appear to reinforce Yahoo Sports reporter Jack Baer's warning last week of a potential "cash crunch" following the abrupt $12.5 billion sale of the Los Angeles Lakers to Josh Kushner and former Disney chief Bob Iger. The Financial Times also reported last week that the FBI seized phones belonging to Walter and Guggenheim Investments President Dina DiLorenzo last year as part of a federal investigation into entities controlled by Walter.
Bloomberg reported Monday that Walter has explored selling his stake in Chelsea FC to Clearlake Capital, the London football club's majority owner. The report is based on information from people familiar with the matter and has yet to be officially confirmed.
Walter's family office approached the Santa Monica-based alternative asset manager, led by Behdad Eghbali and José Feliciano, in recent days, the report said.
For context, Clearlake is Chelsea FC's majority shareholder, holding more than 60% through the BlueCo consortium formed to acquire the club from Roman Abramovich in 2022. The remaining interest is held by Todd Boehly, Mark Walter, and Hansjörg Wyss, each with a minority stake.
The report noted that potential divestment comes as Walter's TWG Global pursues deals to address loans on
