A management fund tied to Democrat billionaire megadonor George Soros is among the group of buyers that will purchase the bankrupt Vice Media after the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York approved the asset purchase agreement on Friday.
Vice, which was valued at $5.7 billion in 2017, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week. The company estimated both its assets and liabilities in the range of $500 million to $1 billion, according to court filings.
Soros Fund Management, which reportedly manages $6.5 billion in asserts, will partner with Fortress Investment Group, Vice Media’s largest debt holder, to buy the outlet for $225 million.
Vice Media filed a notice of an amended bid on Thursday that showed the value of the company sits at $350 million.
Sources close to Soros Fund Management and Fortress were reportedly caught off guard by Vice’s bankruptcy filings, calling it a “nightmare” scenario for the two firms.
“This is the nightmare scenario for them — they never thought it would come to this,” a banking source told the New York Post.
Vice’s Co-CEOs Bruce Dixon and Hozefa Lokhandwala said:
Following a robust court-supervised process, we are pleased to receive Court approval for this transaction, which we believe represents the best path forward for VICE. The relationships we have built with our audience, creators, distribution partners, brand and agency constituents are foundational to VICE, and we look forward to strengthening those relationships as we continue to deliver the award-winning storytelling and journalism that VICE is known for.
The transaction is expected to close on or around July 7.
Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jdixonhamilton@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter.