And gone - Sotheby's auction house is sold for $3.7 billion

Auction house Sotheby’s has announced their most sensational sale yet, Sotheby’s itself. The new name behind the celebrated auction house is entrepreneur Patrick Drahi, and we hear the deal on the table is rumoured to be a whopping USD 3.7 billion.

French-Israeli billionaire Drahi, the founder of Dutch-based telecom giant Altice, said he is “honoured” that the board has chosen to accept his offer. The deal is slated to formalise shortly and will close in the fourth quarter of this year. The deal will be vetted by shareholders and regulators before closing.

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Sotheby’s is one of the most elegant and aspirational brands in the world,” Drahi said. “As a longtime client and lifetime admirer of the company, I am acquiring Sotheby’s together with my family.”

The renowned auctioneer has transformed the monotonous auction market and added a much-required glam quotient to it. Sotheby’s currently operates across 10 metropolitan cities across the globe including London, New York, Hong Kong, and Paris. Sotheby’s technological advancements such as the BidNow program enables potential buyers to view auctions and place bids over the Internet, a revolutionary move for the industry.

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[Via:TPR]