There is certainly a lot going on right now Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, Gilbert’s NBA team, is set to take the court in the NBA finals Monday night with their backs against the wall, down three games to one to the Golden State Warriors. It’s win or go home for the Cavs on Monday night.
And while Gilbert’s NBA team is fighting it out on the court, Gilbert’s Quicken Loans is fighting it out in court with the U.S. Department of Justice over claims that the massive online lender improperly originated mortgage loans that were insured by the Federal Housing Administration, a charge that Quicken has repeatedly and vigorously denied.
But that’s hardly all Gilbert has going on these days.
Gilbert is also the founder and chairman of Rock Ventures, which includes more than 110 companies as well as Gilbert’s portfolio of business and real estate investments. Gilbert has also invested billions of dollars in the revitalization of Detroit through numerous purchases of buildings in downtown Detroit.
And Gilbert could soon be adding another rather significant piece to his portfolio, as Bloomberg reports that Gilbert is deep in the bidding process for Yahoo, which recently said that it is interested in selling off its “core business” as the company struggles with declining revenue.
So just how serious about the Yahoo bidding process is Gilbert? $5 billion, to be exact.
From Bloomberg:
Dan Gilbert, the founder of Quicken Loans Inc. and owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers basketball team, and AT&T Inc. each bid about $5 billion for Yahoo Inc.’s core business, patents and real estate assets, people with knowledge of the matter said.
As the Bloomberg report states, Gilbert isn’t the only bidder for Yahoo, but he reportedly feels “confident” about his chances of securing Yahoo.
Again, from Bloomberg:
Gilbert, whose bid is backed by Warren Buffett, isn’t looking for more outside financing, said one of the people. Despite limited synergies with mortgage-lending company Quicken, Gilbert is confident in his chances of winning, the person said. He’s working with former Yahoo executives and believes Yahoo can be a good investment with new management, the person said.
