SALE - Cox Enterprises to Acquire Axios for USD525 Million

Axios is set to be acquired by Cox Enterprises as it plans to grow the digital news site’s coverage to add more cities. The deal, which values Axios at USD525 Million, is expected to close this month, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Cox Enterprises was already a top investor in Axios and revealed that Axios co-founders Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz will remain on the company’s board and manage day-to-day operations. Additionally, Cox Enterprises CEO Alex Taylor will also join Axios board.

“We were looking for two things: a buyer that was authentically committed for the very long term to serious media, and someone who was fine with us being in control for a long time,” VandeHei said. “That’s not because we’re arrogant but because we have a clear mind about what a good journalism business looks like.”

Moreover, VandeHei, Allen, and Schwartz will continue to hold “substantial stakes in the company,” Cox Enterprises said. Axios had previously been in talks to sell to Axel Springer and to merge with The Athletic, which was acquired by The New York Times at the start of the year.

“We have found our kindred spirit for creating a great, trusted, consequential media company that can outlast us all,” VandeHei said. “Our shared ambitions should be clear: to spread clinical, nonpartisan, trusted journalism to as many cities and as many topics as fast as possible.”

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