One would expect that it was a rather sore point for the Sotheby’s board to see the Peggy and David Rockefeller collection bring in a total of 832.6M USD for Christie’s, the highest in auction history for a single-owner collection. While many have obsessed over why Sotheby’s would agree to the deal, to those familiar with the market, it is clear that the most inevitable change we will see in the future of the storied house is far more aggressive deal structuring when competing for top-tier consignments. The question on the lips of everyone who gravitates to the auction industry is, what does this mean for the company going forward? Having spoken to multiple people with knowledge of the organisation and the wider industry, below are some of the key points regarding the future of the institution that was founded in London in 1744. Sotheby’s will exist under a company, BidFair USA, which is entirely owned by Mr Drahi, insulating it from his Altice telecommunications entity, similar to the structure Mr Pinault uses to silo Christie’s with Groupe Artémis from his Kering luxury goods group. ![]() “The acquisition of Sotheby’s will be funded by financing arranged and underwritten by BNP Paribas as well as by equity provided from my own funds”, according to a press release issued by Mr Drahi’s office. Christie’s financial earnings report in 2018 showed total sales of 7B USD, versus 6.4B USD for Sotheby’s.Īt an offer of 57 USD per common stock, the price proposed by Mr Drahi represents a more than 60% premium over the closing price on June 14 of 35.38 USD, and resulted in the share price jumping to more than 56 USD in the following days. With Christie’s sitting in the portfolio of Groupe Artémis since its acquisition in 1998, alongside other great brands such as the winemaker Château Latour, the newspaper Le Point, and Stade Rennais football club, it has shown the strength of long term thinking rather than chasing quarter-to-quarter results. ![]() The dramatic announcement this week that Sotheby’s is to be acquired by Moroccan-born, French-Israeli telecommunications entrepreneur Patrick Drahi has left many in the marketplace asking what it will mean for the wider auction industry, as it would bring both of the largest houses, an effective duopoly, under the private ownership of European magnates.
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