Small merchant bank The Raine Group "helped Steve Ballmer" buy the NBA L.A. Clippers, according to Michael J. de la Merced of the N.Y. TIMES. And in December, the firm "claimed yet another big transaction," selling a stake in the parent of the Man City football club to a group of Chinese investors at a $3B valuation, one of the highest in the sport. Raine’s role "has not been previously reported." Over just six years, "Raine has become a top player in the world of media and telecommunication deals, helping to both create transactions and, in many cases, take a piece of them as well." 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch said, "There's always a fresh idea you've never seen. They're able to bring a lot of creativity to the table." In setting up Raine, the firm’s founders, Joseph Ravitch, 53, and Jeffrey Sine, 61, "followed in the footsteps of other veteran investment bankers who left established Wall Street banks to strike out on their own." Forgoing the big trading desks, he instead focuses "largely on advising on deals." But Ravitch and Sine "added a wrinkle to the model by investing in venture capital-type transactions as well as arranging them." Sine: "Our competitive advantage is to get deeper" [into media and entertainment deals]. The firm "has suffered some bumps along the way." One of its signature investments, the daily fantasy sports start-up DraftKings, "has taken several blows in recent months as state regulators have investigated whether the company and its rival FanDuel are operating illegally." The sale of a stake in City Football Group, the owner of Man City, "in some ways highlights how Raine operates." Ravitch had known Li Ruigang, a top Chinese investor in media and entertainment deals, "since his days running Goldman’s media deals in Hong Kong" when he frequently visited Li in Shanghai. Then, about three years ago, Ravitch introduced Li to Sheikh Mansour bin Zayet al-Nahan, the Abu Dhabi royal family member "who owns City Football, at an annual meeting of Raine's investments." The aim was to help the football team operator expand its presence into China and become "one of the most prominent" football franchises in the country. In the last six months, Sheikh Mansour and Li "negotiated the sale of a stake in City Football in China Media." What emerged "was a huge transaction," with China Media and its partners paying $400M for a 13% stake in City Football (N.Y. TIMES, 1/3).
