Reuters reports Russia’s richest man, Mikhail Prokhorov, confirmed a takeover bid for the New Jersey Nets on his blog Tuesday.
The report says “Prokhorov’s proposals, sent to existing Nets shareholders [over] the weekend, would see his Onexim group provide a loan to build a substantial part of a new arena, according to a post on his website.”
“Sources close to the billionaire have previously estimated the overall value of any deal at $700 million,” according to Reuters.
NBA officials declined comment, but the Nets said last week they have received interest from potential investors in the team.
“I don’t think players really care who owns the team,” team president Rod Thorn said today. “Whatever happens, I think it will get resolved in a timely fashion.”
Prokhorov, a 44-year-old former banker and mining executive, reportedly “is flush with money after cashing out of assets in 2008 before the global crisis caused commodity prices to crash.”
Prokhorov has an estimated fortune of $9.5 billion, according to the latest Russian edition of Forbes magazine. Forbes recently estimated the value of the Nets’ franchise at $295 million.
Prokhorov would require approval from 75 percent of the NBA’s 30 owners.
With Fred Kerber; Reuters