CHARLOTTE- David Tepper, the founder of Apaloosa Management will buy the Carolina Panthers. Tepper should expect an easy process of acquiring the team without any difficulty from the NFL league office. Jerry Richardson is selling the team due to investigation of sexual harassment towards Panthers employees.
Apaloosa Management is a hedge fund firm. These firms manage high risk investments. In a nutshell, these businesses depend on high risk, high reward investments. It is an incredibly risk business. Tepper’s success is second to no one as he net worth is $11.2 billion according to Forbes. Tepper is acquiring the Panthers for a record amount of $2.2 billion. According to Forbes, many people believe that Tepper is the greatest hedge fund firm entrepreneur of this generation. Apaloosa tries to minimize risks by not forming partnerships unless a business is accredited and qualified. Apaloosa is based in Miami, Florida. Apaloosa’s investments can be anything including real estate. According to Forbes, Tepper said, “I am the animal at the head of the pack. I generally am. I either get eaten or get the good grass.”
Tepper is also a minority owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is an active entrepreneur. He donated three million dollars to hurricane relief last year and $65 million to Carnegie Mellon. He comes across as fearless, inventive, innovative and bold. That is the kind of owner the Panthers will have. The sale hasn’t been approved by the NFL yet. There is always a slight chance that the sale won’t be approved. However, the NFL is expected to approve the sale and it make it official after the league meetings next week. The announcement that Tepper is buying the Panthers should be official in the next seven days. It could lead to a name change for the stadium as well as that generally happens after teams ae sold.