Hipgnosis Songs snaps up 42 catalogues from Kobalt Music

Intellectual property investor Hipgnosis Songs Fund has acquired a portfolio of 42 catalogues from Kobalt Music.

Hipgnosis said on Monday that it had snapped up the portfolio for a total of $322.9m, representing a blended acquisition multiple of 18.3 times its historic annual income.

The FTSE 250-listed outfit added that the purchase was funded with the net proceeds from its September equity fundraising and its existing leverage facility.

In total, the portfolio's 42 catalogues were made up of over 33,000 songs written by over 1,500 songwriters, including tracks by Fleetwood Mac, Skrillex, 2Pac, Backstreet Boys, Mariah Carey, 50 Cent, Beyonce, Kylie Minogue, Matchbox Twenty, Nelly, the B-52s, Toto, Taylor Swift and Weezer.

Chief executive Merck Mercuriadis said: "Hipgnosis has had a special relationship with Kobalt Music since its inception so it's only natural that we would eventually make a deal like this for Kobalt Capital's inaugural fund.

"These special songs that have had such extraordinary success have a lot more joy to bring the world and we look forward to working with these phenomenal creators in taking their songs to new heights while protecting their legacies."

As of 0820 GMT, Hipgnosis shares were up 0.21% at 117.25p.