Hedge fund manager Alexander Klabin to invest in auction house Sotheby's

[September 23, 2020]  (Reuters) - Hedge fund manager Alexander Klabin will invest in international art auction house Sotheby's and become the executive chairman of its art financing business, the company said on Wednesday.

A logo is pictured on Sotheby's before the resuming of live jewellery auctions after the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown in Geneva, Switzerland, June 21, 2020. Picture taken June 21, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

The company did not disclose terms of the Klabin's investment but said he will lead a management team to help Sotheby's modernize its underwriting process and improve its access to capital markets.

Klabin is the founder of hedge fund Senator Investment Group, which he left in February. He will launch his newly-formed company named Ancient in early 2021.

Sotheby's Financial Services offers financing against art collections of all types, including those of the late Duchess of Windsor, the personal collection of artist Andy Warhol and Edvard Munch's painting "The Scream".

The 275-year-old auction house was the oldest company listed on the New York Stock Exchange before it was taken private https://reut.rs/301OBWc in 2019 by Franco-Israeli cable magnate Patrick Drahi in a $3.7-billion deal.

(Reporting by Madhvi Pokhriyal in Bengaluru and Krystal Hu in New York; Editing by Arun Koyyur)

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