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Updated: LA billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong is interested in buying AEG
Oct. 29, 2009-Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong smiles during an announcement in Los Angeles. Magic Johnson sold his small ownership stake in the Los Angeles Lakers to Soon-Shion on Monday, Oct. 18, 2010.
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AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File
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Los Angeles biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong could be the next owner of AEG.
Soon-Shiong told the Los Angeles Times he is interested in AEG’s sale and that he has the “utmost respect” for what AEG’s top leaders have done to revitalize the downtown community.
“We clearly are interested in furthering this legacy for Los Angeles,” Soon-Shiong said in a statement.
Soon-Shiong, 60, has a net worth of $7.3 billion, according to Forbes magazine. Last year, he was one of three U.S. biotech billionaires last year, Forbes said.
Doug Arthur, managing director at New York investment banking firm Evercore Partners, said Soon-Shiong's interest in AEG is probably a combination of having a lot of wealth and showing previous interest in sports franchises. Soon-Shiong owns a stake in the LA Lakers and had pursued purchasing the Dodgers.
"If he was actually interested in the Dodgers, he'll probably be interested in the LA Kings and some of the (AEG) venues," Arthur said. "He's got a lot of money."
Soon-Shiong made his fortune by starting companies Abraxis BioScience and American Pharmaceutical Partners (APP) and later selling them for billions of dollars.
Soon-Shiong sold Abraxis BioScience, that developed a drug to treat breast cancer, in a $2.9 billion deal in 2010. He sold APP in 2008 in a $5.6 billion deal, according to Forbes.
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Soon-Shiong has also been active in philanthropy efforts through the Chan Soon-Shiong Family Foundation. The group gave a $100 million underwriting guarantee that would help reopen the troubled Martin Luther King Jr. Hospital.
“We hope that together we can fill this unjust void in the Los Angeles community and provide all members of the community with equal access to appropriate medical care of the highest quality,” Soon-Shiong said at the time.
Soon-Shiong and his wife, actress Michele Chan, also donated $135 million to renovate, add staff and help with research at St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica. Michele Chan has starred in several TV shows, including MacGyver.
KPCC requests to reach Soon-Shiong and his representative were not immediately returned.
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