Joshua Kushner, left, founder of Thrive Capital, and former Disney CEO Bob Iger during the Allen & Co. Media and Technology Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, July 10, 2026.
Getty Images (L) | CNBC (R)
The Los Angeles Lakers have sold — again.
Less than a year after buying a controlling ownership stake in the NBA’s Lakers, Mark Walter has sold his majority equity to Joshua Kushner and Bob Iger, according to a statement.
The deal values the team at $12.5 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the terms of the sale.
“As lifelong NBA fans, we are deeply honored for the opportunity to become stewards of the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the most iconic sports franchises in the world,” Iger and Kushner said in a joint statement Wednesday. “We have immense respect for the leadership and vision of Jerry and Jeanie Buss. Our long-term commitment is to build on that foundation, compete at the highest level, and serve this extraordinary team, its fans, and the city of Los Angeles.”
Kushner and Iger have been business partners before. Iger joined Thrive Capital, the venture capital firm run and founded by Kushner, earlier this year. Iger, 75, stepped down as CEO of Disney earlier this year after two stints that totaled roughly 20 years at the helm of the media giant.
Kushner is the brother of Jared Kushner, who is married to President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka. Kushner and Iger had previously expressed interest in buying an NBA expansion team in Las Vegas.
Walter acquired the Lakers in October at a valuation of $10 billion.
Last month, Bloomberg reported the Securities and Exchange Commission and U.S. prosecutors were investigating potential financial improprieties at two of Walter’s insurance companies and at Guggenheim Partners, the sprawling financial firm that Walter co-founded and still leads.
Walter’s TWG Global holding company controls the insurers, his stake in Guggenheim and ownership stakes in other sports teams including MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers and the English Premier League soccer team Chelsea.
Walter is also among a group of investors that owns the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.
The sale announced Wednesday only includes his stake in the Lakers, according to the person familiar with the matter.
The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Walter, 66, suffered a stroke in 2024 and that his health status has “become a matter of concern inside his business empire, with varying opinions on whether lingering effects from the stroke have impacted his fitness to lead his businesses.”
Iger and his wife, Willow Bay, acquired professional women’s soccer team Angel City Football Club for $250 million in 2024.
Read the original article here