Apollo Funds Invest $1.25 Billion for Minority Stake in BMG Subsidiary with Concord Assets

Apollo invests $1.25B in BMG subsidiary behind legacy Concord bonds, taking a minority stake

September 17, 2026 By Tim Ingham

Apollo Global Management  has provided a USD $1.25 billion equity investment tied to BMG , in a deal that allows the music company to repay debt secured against Concord ‘s catalog.

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Apollo announced the transaction on Thursday (September 17), a little over two weeks after BMG and Concord completed their merger on September 1 – a move which formed a combined company operating under the BMG brand.

Apollo -managed funds and affiliates have acquired what Apollo describes as a “noncontrolling interest” in a subsidiary of BMG that holds the legacy Concord asset-backed securities, backed by a catalog of over 1 million songs.

In practical terms, Concord has spent the past four years raising money by issuing bonds secured against the royalty income generated by its songs and recordings.

Those bonds – asset-backed securities, or ABS –  now sit with the combined company following the  BMG merger’s close . Apollo ‘s cash allows BMG to pay some of them off.

In exchange, Apollo holds a minority position in the subsidiary that holds those bonds – but seemingly not a stake in the BMG ‘topco’ itself.

That structure is presumably what Apollo Partner Jamshid Ehsani refers to when he calls the investment “non-dilutive”: Bertelsmann ‘s 67% ownership of BMG , and the 33% held by affiliates of Great Mountain Partners , are untouched by the deal.

Jamshid Ehsani , Partner at Apollo , said: “We are pleased to support the transformative combination of BMG and Concord through a tailored, non-dilutive equity investment that strengthens the combined company’s financial positioning as it enters this exciting next chapter.

“This transaction is indicative of Apollo’s growing role as a provider of high-grade capital solutions to leading corporations across an expanding range of industries and use cases, leveraging our scaled permanent capital base.”

> “We are pleased to support the transformative combination of BMG and Concord through a tailored, non-dilutive equity investment.” Jamshid Ehsani, Apollo

Bob Valentine , Chief Executive Officer of BMG , said: “The combination of BMG and Concord marks a defining moment in our company’s evolution.

“Apollo’s continued partnership and confidence in our strategy further strengthens our financial foundation and positions us to champion artists and songwriters, and to pursue global long-term growth opportunities.

“Together, we are building a stronger global music company with the scale, capabilities, and resources to capitalize on the opportunities ahead.”

> “Apollo’s continued partnership and confidence in our strategy further strengthens our financial foundation and positions us to champion artists and songwriters, and to pursue global long-term growth opportunities.” Bob Valentine, BMG

Bertelsmann disclosed the Apollo investment in its own announcement of the merger’s completion on September 1, putting the figure at approximately EUR €1.1 billion .

That release said the capital would enable BMG to “refinance and repay outstanding BMG / Concord ABS liabilities in the future.”

Apollo has backed Concord ‘s bond program since 2022, supporting the issuance of over $4.5 billion of ABS debt, according to Thursday’s announcement.

Concord ‘s most recent bond sale, closed in July 2025 , raised $1.765 billion against a portfolio of music rights valued at more than $5.1 billion .

Apollo structured that transaction and formed the investor syndicate behind it.

The Concord rights behind those bonds include recordings and songs associated with The Beatles , Beyoncé, Bruno Mars, Ed Sheeran, Kiss, Creedence Clearwater Revival , Daddy Yankee , Phil Collins , R.E.M. , and The Rolling Stones .

This isn’t Apollo ‘s first major investment in music. The firm says it has originated over $8 billion in music industry investments over the past five years.

In July 2024, Apollo provided a $700 million “capital solution” to Sony Music Group , which it said was intended to fund investments in the music industry.

Apollo is believed to have  partially financed   Sony ‘s acquisition of the  Queen  catalog, in a transaction reported at the time to be worth  USD $ 1.27 billion .

Apollo also backed the 2021 launch of HarbourView Equity Partners , the music and media rights company founded by former Tempo Music CEO Sherrese Clarke Soares , which is now on course to surpass $4B in regulatory assets under management.

In 2024, Apollo committed both debt and minority equity to Concord Chorus Ltd , the vehicle that bid $1.51 billion for Hipgnosis Songs Fund . In the end,  Blackstone pipped Concord to complete the takeover of HSF, in a $1.58 billion deal.

On the new Apollo/BMG deal, Deutsche Bank served as financial advisor and Latham & Watkins LLP as legal counsel to Apollo .

Goldman Sachs was financial advisor to BMG , with DLA Piper and Davis Polk serving as its legal counsel.

The combined BMG holds a catalog of over four million works, and is headquartered in Nashville , with Berlin serving as its European base.

On completion of the merger, the company said it was targeting revenues of over USD $2.5 billion at an EBITDA of USD $1.2 billion “in the midterm.”

Apollo had approximately $1.05 trillion of assets under management as of June 30, 2026. Music Business Worldwide

_Originally reported by [Music Business Worldwide](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/bmg-and-concord-apollo-bond-debt/)._