CVC Capital has sold a $1.6 billion stake in Formula 1 to investors ahead of the sport's planned $3 billion IPO.
Formula 1's stock market flotation is planned to go ahead in Singapore next month, and sources have told the Reuters news agency that CVC has sold a stake of around 20 percent of the sport to three investors including BlackRock, an U.S.-based multinational investment corporation that is the world's largest asset manager..
As a result of the pre-IPO deal, CVC's stake is believed to have been cut to around 40 percent. The move gives Formula 1 an enterprise value of about $9.1 billion.
"We view this (pre-IPO deal) as a validation of the company's valuation," a source told Reuters about the deal.