Canes were actually only valued around $400M when he purchased them (he purchased at $450M to pay off debts). I wouldn’t be surprised if he essentially just took that money out and reinvested it in the trailblazers. That would be less than 1/4 stake.
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Yeah very common, gotta take some profit.
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Dundon initially purchased 52% of the team for $420 million, which is a valuation of around $800 million. He later purchased all of the minority shares in the team, presumably a similar valuation. (Link) So $2 billion still represents a huge bump in the asset’s value, so he’s done quite well for himself. There’s no word on how much of the team is up for sale, but if the “significant” minority share he’s selling is around 25 percent, let’s just say, that would be about $500 million, which is still less than he’s invested in the team to date.
Well, if the Hurricanes are worth $2B by themselves now, I guess we have to push this figure up a bit. But, yeah, Dundon’s true net worth is very opaque.
True, Dundon did make his fortune in subprime auto lending, a fortune that may have been built on a foundation of predatory lending. In fact, somewhat awkwardly, one of the companies Dundon co-founded paid $550 million to settle a lawsuit filed by several states, including Oregon. (Dundon had left the company by the time the lawsuit was settled.) And, yes, subprime auto loan delinquency rates have reached record highs. Dundon Capital Partners still owns a stake in Exeter Finance, another major subprime lender (which the state of Oregon is also currently investigating!), but it’s impossible to know how much of his net worth is still tied up in this industry, or how much the current state of the market is affecting his disposable capital.
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Im afraid now more of him wanting to sell the Canes, that could mean possible new owner who could try to relocate the team.
not happening for a long time
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Hey! Hockey team! You’re going nowhere. I’ve got you through the 2043-44 NHL season!
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By then, the Triangle will likely have another million people. At nearly 3.5 million people, it’s hard to to imagine a franchise up and moving.
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But MLB is dead here in Raleigh…
NOoooo haha not at all. Don’t read too much into the Dundon money thing - dude is still FILTHY RICH hahahaha and if he needs to sell stuff or partner with someone to buy an MLB team, he will.
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This is 100% false.
Dundon bought the Trailblazers with a group (multiple other billionaires), he has said from day 1 that would be the setup with MLB as well, and now he’s looking to use that same model with the Canes.
BTW, he’s also got Pickleball. So he’s stretched thin and about to dive headfirst into a major real estate project (81 acres around Lenovo).
If you were Dundon and you wanted to grow your empire, why would you want full ownership (and full risk) of the NHL team, when that’s not how’ll you’ll operate with the NBA/MLB teams?
Sure, you sell some stake in the Canes, but you still control the majority, so you still call the shots. Sure, you have to share some of the profit as well, but if that money could go further elsewhere (say NBA/MLB/Real Estate –> where revenue is greater), then why not create liquidity to grow?
This news should not be a shocker at all and should not raise any kind of caution flags. Dundon is in acquisition mode overall; I’d assume he’s just freeing up capital and time to continue.
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There are probably little differences in the cash flow from Dundon’s investment portfolio. The real increase in wealth is the rising market value of those investments.
Having ridden the steep valuation slope of the Canes franchise from near-bottom of the league to the mid-ranks it is entirely reasonable to shift some of that particular stake to a vehicle that might rise faster over the next few years. Note he retains operational control with the new co-investors just along for the ride.
He has the surrounding Lenovo Center property and the Trailblazers as immediate investment candidates with MLB as a possibility. Let the man cook.
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Wolfpack beat Georgetown yesterday in DC in the NCAA soccer quarterfinals. The final four is at Wake Med Soccer Complex in Cary. State is the highest seed left and essentially playing at home. Playing Saint Louis U on Friday at 8:30 PM. The UDUB vs Furman match is at 6:00. Championship is on Monday the 15th.
Go Wolfpack!
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This is one of my favorite hopefully future Raleigh Projects , so I picked this project to say “ Happy New Year To Everyone That Loves DTRaleigh. Com! Matt, What a wonderful & great insight you had in starting this blog! Thank You Sir!
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Interesting tidbit in this end of year interview with the Mayor by WRAL:
We’ve been working just locally, lots of conversations. I know the chamber just hosted some of the MLB advocates around building up the local muscle and resources to be able to field a team and be competitive in the national landscape. We all know there’s maybe a window as they expand the league in the next 2 to 3 years to be one of the cities that is working with all the parties.
In the meantime, we’ve also got women’s soccer. The Carolina Courage, we need to improve their field, and I think that is part of a building block to showing that we can actually attract a Major League Baseball team, by doing right by the Carolina Courage.
I find it very interesting that she brings up a potential improvement to the Courage situation unprompted. With them currently being in Cary, this can only mean a new stadium, not improvements to the current. Maybe something actually is in the works? More than just the DT South pipe dream.
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I certainly hope so concerning a Soccer Stadium and a Major League Baseball Stadium! I would love to see both in Downtown South Project! Just My Desire! Both Stadiums would set off a Hugh Downtown South Project that Raleigh really needs in my opinion. MAB is working behind the scenes because she loves both projects.
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DTS would be awesome for both stadiums. But this might also be a play for regional cooperation moving towards a much larger project.
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“Go Panthers”! Hoping For A Big Win Next Game!
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There’s no way this is correct… 19,606 seats for hockey and 20,450 for basketball…
I have to wonder if WRAL did the math wrong.
From current capacity it would be 18,993 and 19,782 respectively.
From capacity before this season, it would be 19,394 and 20,194 respectively.
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Yeah, I was thinking about this too. Apparently, they’re taking out some aisles in the lower bowl to add more seats 
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Yes, but still, no way that adds 1300 seats from what we’re at now. I’m fairly confident WRAL is just making up numbers.