The deal was partly financed by one private equity fund, Apollo Global Management, and Gannett is now controlled by another private equity fund, Fortress Investment Group, which is owned by the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank. . In April, the company said it had received a Chatham-led bid worth more than $300 million. The state has said its exploring its options in light of Bezoss claim that American Media tried to blackmail him. The family-owned publisher of The Sacramento Bee and The Miami Herald announced the winner of its bankruptcy sale: Chatham Asset Management, the owner of The National Enquirer. This story was co-published with MapLight and Capital & Main. Donnelley to $10.85 Per Share in Cash. In a statement, Craig Forman, the McClatchy chief executive, said Chatham would allow the company to continue providing strong news coverage. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. The hedge fund is run by Anthony Melchiorre, a GOP donor who reportedly met with the president and AMI CEO David Pecker at the White House soon after Trump took office. Something other than fundamentals are playing a huge factor in those bonds., In response to questions about the prices, Melchiorre sent a statement through a representative: We have tremendous conviction in our fundamental thesis on late stage media consolidation in North America and competitors are free to express opposing views.. Sign up and get the best of News delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. The California state pension system has been planning to exit all of its hedge fund investments and has been asking Chatham to sell holdings so it can return about $200 million. A year later, 3 grads CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. And given the strains in the print-media business, the strong price of the debt is difficult to explain, traders say. Katherine Burton, Sridhar Natarajan and Shahien Nasiripour, Bloomberg News, National Enquirer tabloid newspapers. This much is sure: Chatham founder Melchiorre, 51, has a formidable reputation. Chatham itself has been undergoing its first ever exam by the SECs inspections division, according to people familiar with the 16-year-old firm. Over that time, Chatham has sunk even more money into one of its most controversial investments: National Enquirer parent American Media, which accounts for about 16%, or $400 million, of the $2.5 billion that Chatham manages in its main fund and related accounts. to see more advanced email alert options such as selecting any type of They wanted to kill a lawsuit by the former head of another Chatham company. Alt Turnover is calculated by taking either the total MV of new purchases or Chatham hasnt been accused of wrongdoing by authorities, and the fund had no comment on its interactions with federal inspectors. After sinking their claws into such companies, they suck out the cash and invest the money elsewhere, where they can get better, surer returns. It borders on the departments of Var and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, and Italy to the east. Apr 3, 2023 11:40 AM PDT. Grimstad claimed Chatham artificially drove down the price of the bonds by almost 30% in a single trade, effectively blocking a debt-restructuring effort so it could capture control of the company. Chatham said at the time that the allegations were baseless and without merit. But Im not now. His behavior infuriated some senior executives, according to former colleagues. The finance industry is also a key component of the largest American newspaper chain, Gannett, which publishes USA Today, The Arizona Republic and 250 other dailies. For the low-profile Chatham, American Media has become a high-profile headache. The new, supersize version of Gannett resulted from a merger last year between Gannett and the parent of GateHouse Media. It needs to be bolstered and rebuilt, not milked for whatever profit it can still produce., Chatham Hedge Fund Has the Winning Bid for McClatchy Newspapers, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/12/business/media/hedge-fund-mcclatchy-newspapers.html. In recent months, Postmedia closed approximately 15 community publications and laid off 120 employees in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, The Toronto Star reported. After Grimstad filed his suit, the Chatham camp countered, claiming Grimstad had used company money to pay a Las Vegas escort $4,000 for sexual activities and later hired her and her mother. In addition to being a principal owner of American Media Inc., the parent company of The Enquirer and other tabloids, it is a major investor in Postmedia, the publisher of Canadian newspapers including The National Post, The Montreal Gazette and The Ottawa Citizen. Postmedia (along with its external counsel) is strongly of the view that there has been no contravention of the Competition Act with respect to this matter, Phyllise Gelfand, a Postmedia spokeswoman, said in a statement. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice| Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information| Ad Choices Playing tough is the Chatham way. The examination that led to the investigation was conducted by members of the Division of Examinations' Private Funds Unit, including Jennifer Duggins, Christopher Marino, and Michael Collins. Solutions. Chatham Asset Management LLC, a private investment firm headquartered in Chatham, on May 16 submitted a letter of interest to acquire San Antonio-based Vericast from MacAndrews & Forbes Inc. for roughly $2.85 billion. Apr 3, 2023. The SEC order found that these trades were executed at prices Chatham and Mr. Melchiorre proposed and had the effect of increasing the price of the AMI bonds at a significantly higher rate than the prices of similar securities. Freelance budgets have shrunk at Postmedia, and travel expenses have been severely curtailed, the people said. During the coronavirus shutdown, Postmedia has made further cuts, laying off 80 employees and closing down 15 community papers. After sparking federal prosecutors ire for its role in burying Trumps secrets shortly before the 2016 election, the company has drawn international attention for its war with Jeff Bezos over its expos of his extramarital affair. Performance numbers calculated through 2022-05-16. Aiysha Johnson will take the helm of the 13,000-plus member organization following Ralph Albert Thomas' June r[], The Englewood-based advisory firm has entered into an agreement to buy Brainard Capital Management of Austin, [], The 29-year-old and conspirators engaged USPS employees to steal the charge cards from the mail in exchange fo[], The CEO of Toorak Capital Partners offers an analysis of the current residential real estate market, the firm'[], Small businesses are the backbone of our economy. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Since it was founded in 2001, Seaport Global has been in full compliance with all laws and regulations governing our industry, the company said in a statement. While he was wrangling with Chatham, news trucks were parked outside his house for days. Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments. Chatham is not a newcomer to the news industry. SEC employees have questioned the firm on subjects including its pricing of bonds and conversations with various bond dealers. 13 Beds 11 Baths 5920 sqft. In the interest letter to Vericast CEO John O'Malley, Chantham Managing Member Anthony Melchiorre detailed CAM's longstanding investments in the company, including: Serving as the lead backstop. Chathams trading has drawn scrutiny before. Michael Eisner came to the newsroom. Anthony Melchiorre has an ownership stake in Chatham Asset Management, LLC of between 50% and 75%. /s/ Anthony Melchiorre Anthony Melchiorre Managing Member Contacts. State officials are well-positioned and duty-bound to investigate allegations of potential wrongdoing in hedge fund portfolios, said former Securities and Exchange Commission attorney Edward Siedle. Ive received well over six figures since retiring in 2006, and I could get another six, if I live long enough and if the PBGC either makes McClatchy pay up or picks up at least two-thirds of the companys pension responsibilities. Investment Advisor In the last two fiscal years that ended in August, Postmedia booked losses totaling about $40 million in Canadian dollars. Chatham Asset Management, LLC Anthony Melchiorre Managing Member Dear Mr. Melchiorre, We are writing to follow up on our discussions with regards to your non-binding, conditional indication of interest to acquire R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company. The firms assets have doubled in the past three years. The SEC has increased its focus on the valuation of securities across the market, said Jacob Frenkel, a lawyer at Dickinson Wright. Such wagers have come under increased scrutiny from regulators in the last year. Grimstad claimed in filings that Chatham had manipulated iPayment bonds to seize control of the company. That money was part of a deal the company had struck with Karen McDougal, a Playboy model who said she had an affair with Donald J. Trump. 1 Twitter 2 Facebook 3RSS 4YouTube What a great word! Last year, barely three months before Christie left office, his administrationsteeredanother $200 million to another Chatham vehicle. The firm and its founder, Anthony Melchiorre, have a reputation for hard-edged business. Thats something we wrestle with, he said. Washington D.C., April 3, 2023 . Federal regulators have been asking questions, too. The order further finds that these trades were executed at prices Chatham and Melchiorre proposed and had the effect of increasing the price of the AMI bonds at a significantly higher rate than the prices of similar securities. A similar story has unfolded at newspaper publisher McClatchy, which has posted annual losses since 2015. Price swings on the trades described in the lawsuit marked the biggest-ever percentage changes in those securities, data reviewed by Bloomberg show. Which is concerning., Under Hedge Fund Set to Own McClatchy, Canadian Newspapers Endured Big Cuts, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/16/business/media/hedge-fund-chatham-mcclatchy-postmedia-newspapers.html. Chathams track record as an owner of a major newspaper chain is grim, according to 10 current and former Postmedia employees who spoke with The New York Times on the condition of anonymity because they feared retaliation. The 2016 presidential campaign had just ended, and Michael Cohen was fresh off handling hush money for Donald Trump. That's why all these financial players Chatham Asset Management here, Alden Global Capital, Fortress Investment Group, and Apollo Global Management elsewhere find newspapers such a hospitable environment. What it does, apparently, is make its clients lots of money. It even offered lower yields than some blue-chip companies. Download 13F Summary 2023 BridgeTower Media. It doesnt produce a product or render a significant service to society. A bankruptcy court hearing on the matter is scheduled for July 24. And your word synedoche drove me to the online dictionary. Found 4 colleagues at Chatham Asset Management. JimmyCsays: At the juncture of journalism and daily life in KC, Theres clarity in the St. Louis Post-Dispatchs futureFor The Star, just a bighaze. Chatham and Mr. Melchiorre consented to the SEC's order without admitting or denying its findings. Get our free e-alerts & breaking news notifications! Now he was working on behalf of Chatham Asset Management, a $4.3 billion hedge fund that owns the National Enquirer. Alden Global Capital controls roughly 200 outlets through its newspaper chain, MediaNews Group. In October 2016, a New Jersey hedge fund assumed ownership of Canadas largest newspaper chain with very little fanfare. In recent months it put together the bid that has been declared the winner in a U.S. Bankruptcy Court auction supervised by Judge Michael E. Wiles, a McClatchy spokeswoman said on Sunday. Chathams media interests are led by two of its partners, Evan Ratner, a longtime Wall Street investor and a former analyst with Goldman Sachs, and Barry Schwartz, who has specialized in debt investments. Thats because they are losing to him.. You know a little about ledes (leads) yourself. Chathams tabloid publisher possesses a treasure trove of Trumps secrets, his former fixer Cohen told Congress last month. Their bonds, though, havent suffered. The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged New Jersey-based Chatham Asset Management LLC and its founder, Anthony Melchiorre, in connection with improper trading of certain fixed income securities. AMI gave$10,000 to a super PACsupporting Christies 2016 presidential bid, and Mother Jones reported that ChristieplacedPecker on his campaign leadership team. An SEC spokesman declined to comment. Its a fair question.". Chatham has been restructuring their debt to give them more time. In the same period, it spent nearly $127 million on debt payments. American Media now owes debtholders in excess of $1 billion, more than the book value of its assets. Im always for local ownership whenever possible, and local support, said Sree Sreenivasan, professor of digital innovation at Stony Brook Universitys School of Journalism, sounding a note of caution regarding finance-industry ownership. A first French dpartement of Alpes-Maritimes existed in the same area from 1793 to 1814. Few people noticed, including some of the chains employees. Tony Ridder came to the newsroom and spoke, although he was such a stone of a personality I dont specifically remember it. Traders have privately criticized what they see as lofty valuations of illiquid securities. All rights reserved. Wall Streets main regulator has been looking into opaque markets since the financial crisis, uncovering a wide swath of bad behavior from lying salespeople to bogus quotes from brokers. the MV of securities sold, whichever is less, The regulator declined to comment. The Christie administrations shift of $500 million into Chatham makes New Jersey retirees a substantial investor in the hedge fund, which manages $3.2 billion in assets, according tostate records. The company regrets any distress that may have been caused to the Grimstads by the public filing of the litigation against them, Chatham-controlled iPayment said at the time. Chatham had the winning bid for the McClatchy Company, the family-run publisher of The Sacramento Bee and other papers. The Securities and Exchange Commission has stepped up examinations of various bond funds lately, inquiring about their relationships with brokers and how they value debt. Yet, over the years questions have swirled around Chatham. The sale was proposed after American Media signed a nonprosecution agreement with federal prosecutors in which it affirmed that it had made a payment to influence the 2016 election. Finally, they agreed to prohibitions from serving in certain positions in the investment industry, pursuant to the Investment Company Act. Sue, Chatham lawyers warned, and well drag your family into this, according to court testimony. Sort: $5,409,230. A Chicago-area kid who studied economics at Northwestern and got an MBA from the University of Chicago, his high-toned education didn't reduce the intensity of the former high-school football star. Chatham hasnt been accused of wrongdoing by authorities, and the fund had no comment on its interactions with federal inspectors. Now he was working on behalf of Chatham Asset Management, a $4.3 billion hedge fund that owns the National Enquirer. Chatham took on more American Media debt in recent months, getting Seaport to arrange a deal after Credit Suisse Group AG got cold feet amid public furor over the publishers antics in the 2016 presidential election. Behind the salacious headlines was an issue thats drawing scrutiny from regulators: bond prices. Start Free Trial . Cohens assignment: Get Carl Grimstad, the recently fired CEO of payments processor iPayment Holdings, to the table. An SEC spokesman declined to comment. And as it happened, the hedge fund owned the tabloid, the National Enquirer, that he had just used to try and catch and kill stories about the future president. "As our order finds, Chathams trading in AMI bonds had the effect of increasing the prices of those generally illiquid securities in a way that was disconnected from economic reality," said Sanjay Wadhwa, Deputy Director of the SECs Division of Enforcement. The number of journalists at its Vancouver papers the Vancouver Sun and The Province has been cut in half, according to Mr. Gibson. SEC form, multiple filers or classes of filers, and much more.***. In 2018, American Media announced the sale of the tabloid to the family that founded the Hudson News chain of newspaper and magazine shops. Activist Investor A spokeswoman for Cohen declined to comment, and a spokesman for American Media and Pecker didnt respond to requests for comment. Chatham, an investor in the company since 2009, is its largest creditor. Hedge funds and private equity firms have had a growing presence in the news industry, to the chagrin of press advocates who argue that financial firms do not make civic-minded stewards of a business built largely on holding the powerful to account.