A syndicate of investors is in the final stages of sealing a deal for cryptocurrency-focused media company CoinDesk, the Wall Street Journal reported. The investor group is led by Matthew Roszak of Tally Capital and Peter Vessenes of Capital6. The transaction would have an enterprise value of about $125 million. CoinDesk’s parent company, Digital Currency Group (DCG), is expected to retain a stake in the media, events, data and indexes business as part of the deal, which is expected to be finalized in the next few weeks. CoinDesk’s current management is expected to stay in place. In January, CoinDesk had retained investment bankers at Lazard to help it explore options including a partial or full sale. At the time, DCG had received multiple unsolicited offers north of $200 million. DCG acquired the media company in 2016 for $500,000. CoinDesk generated $50 million in revenue last year from online advertising as well as its index and events business. The deal comes at a time when DCG is being squeezed by the bankruptcy of Genesis Global Capital, and the closures of TradeBlock and HQ. The crypto conglomerate has struggled after a string of high-profile bankruptcies in the industry and a fall in token prices last year. It is locked in a legal battle with Gemini Trust Company, which accused DCG of papering over a huge loss that Genesis took in the spring of 2022 after a default by Three Arrows Capital.
