One of Fortnite developer Epic Games’ biggest minority investors, the talent agency Endeavor, which is also the owner of the UFC, is looking to offload some of its stake in the studio.
Sources told The Hollywood Reporter that Endeavor is moving to sell “a part of its stake” in Epic Games for a “high multiple.” It’s not clear exactly how many shares Endeavor is looking to sell.
The move comes during difficult times for Endeavor. Some of the company’s biggest businesses include the talent agency WME and the UFC, which it owns. Those businesses have been rocked by the COVID-19 pandemic, and in response, Endeavor announced layoffs and furloughs impacting thousands of employees around the world. Selling a portion of its stake in Epic could be a move to shore up capital in the short-term to help weather the storm.
Fortnite and Epic Games are currently riding high. Fortnite recently celebrated a massive new milestone–350 million registered players. Meanwhile, Epic Games is reportedly close to signing a new round of funding that would bring the independent company’s total valuation up to $15 billion.
Endeavor is one of at least three minority investors in Epic Games, the others being Walt Disney and Lightspeed Venture Partners. In 2012, Epic sold a 40 percent stake in the company to the Chinese internet behemoth Tencent.
Disney used Epic’s Unreal Engine to film sequences in The Mandalorian, and it’s expected the companies will continue to work together in the future.
More recently, Epic acquired the Houseparty app, which has exploded in popularity as people stay home and look for new ways to stay connected with friends during the lockdowns.
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