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Blackstone's Schwarzman says cannot buy Bloomberg while owning Refinitiv

February 27, 2020 at 05:26 am EST

Blackstone Group Inc Chief Executive Stephen Schwarzman said the world's biggest private equity firm cannot buy Bloomberg should it come up for sale as long as the firm owns competitor Refinitiv.

Schwarzman said that he did consider such an investment on reading the news that Mike Bloomberg would put his financial news and data provider up for sale if he became president of the United States.

"I wondered whether I should buy the firm, but I then I thought as long as we own Refinitiv, which is their competitor, we can't," he said at the SuperReturn private equity conference in Berlin.

Blackstone bought a 55% stake in Thomson Reuters's data division in 2018, renamed later as Refinitiv, valuing the firm at $20 billion and making it the private equity firm's biggest bet since the 2008 financial crisis.

The London Stock Exchange last year agreed to buy Refinitiv in an all-share deal valued at $27 billion including debt. Blackstone will retain a minority stake.

Schwarzman offered to buy a stake in Bloomberg back in 1988, but was ultimately thwarted by Mike Bloomberg's stipulation that he should never sell the stake and stay a partner for life.

By Chibuike Oguh and Abhinav Ramnarayan

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Stephen Schwarzman

Mr. Stephen A. Schwarzman is a Chairman, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder at Blackstone Group Management LLC, at Blackstone Liquid Credit Strategies LLC, at Blackstone Corporate Private Equity, at Blackstone Alternative Credit Advisors LP, at GSO Capital Partners (Private Equity), at Blackstone Alternative Asset Management LP, a General Partner at Blackstone Group Holdings LLC, a Chairman & Chief Executive Officer at The Blackstone Group, Inc., at Blackstone Advisory Services LP, a Chief Executive Officer at Blackstone (Legacy S Corp.), Inc., a Co-Chairman at Schwarzman Scholars, a Member at Council on Foreign Relations, Inc., at The Business Council, at The Business Roundtable, at The International Business Council and a Member-International Business Council at The World Economic Forum USA, Inc. He is on the Board of Directors at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Asia Society, Film Society of Lincoln Center, New York City Partnership, The Frick Collection, The New York Public Library and The Kennedy Center Corporate Fund. Mr. Schwarzman was previously employed as a Chairman, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder by Blackstone Alternative Investment Advisors LLC, a Managing Director by Lehman Brothers, Inc., a Chairman & Chief Executive Officer by Blackstone Distressed Securities Advisors LP, by PJT Partners, Inc., a Chief Executive Officer by DJO Global, Inc., a Co-Chairman by The Partnership for New York City, and an Adjunct Professor by Yale University. He also served on the board at Freescale Semiconductor Ltd. and New York City Ballet, Inc. He holds a B.A. from Yale University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

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Blackstone Liquid Credit Strategies LLC Blackstone Liquid Credit Strategies LLC Investment ManagersFinance Blackstone Liquid Credit Strategies LLC (BLCS) is a SEC-registered investment adviser and hedge fund manager headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 2007 and is a subsidiary of Blackstone Alternative Credit Advisors LP, which is ultimately held by Blackstone, Inc. (NYSE: BX). The firm was formerly known as GSO / Blackstone Debt Funds Management LLC and changed their name to Blackstone Liquid Credit Strategies LLC in 2020. BLCS serves as investment manager for (i) pooled investment vehicles operating as private investment funds and (ii) registered investment companies.	Chief Executive Officer
Blackstone Corporate Private Equity Blackstone Corporate Private Equity Investment ManagersFinance Blackstone Corporate Private Equity (Blackstone Corporate) is a private equity division of The Blackstone Group Inc founded in 1985 by Stephen Allen Schwarzman. The firm is headquartered in New York.	Chief Executive Officer

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