Byron Allen buys majority stake in BuzzFeed, becomes CEO

Byron Allen is acquiring a bulk involvement successful BuzzFeed for $120 cardinal and volition go the company's president and CEO, BuzzFeed said Monday.

The acquisition involves 40 cardinal BuzzFeed shares astatine $3 apiece, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows, with the transaction leaving Allen Family Digital holding astir 52% of outstanding shares erstwhile it closes. Financing consists of an upfront currency outgo of $20 million, with the remaining $100 cardinal carried arsenic a promissory enactment that matures successful 5 years and accrues involvement astatine an yearly complaint of 5%. Closing is expected connected oregon astir May 26.

On the day the woody closes, Peretti — who co-founded BuzzFeed — volition springiness up some the main enforcement relation and his chairmanship of the board, moving alternatively into a recently created presumption carrying the rubric president of BuzzFeed AI. Byron Allen, 65, has served arsenic founder, chairman, and CEO of Allen Media Group since founding the institution successful 1993. His holdings see The Weather Channel, 13 broadcast tv web affiliate stations crossed 11 U.S. markets, and 10 HD tv networks.

In a statement, Allen outlined plans to propulsion BuzzFeed and HuffPost toward "free-streaming video, audio and user-generated content," adding that BuzzFeed is present "officially chasing YouTube to go different premiere escaped video streaming service." Peretti welcomed the modulation successful his ain statement, saying Allen is well-positioned to usher the institution into "our adjacent signifier of growth" and expressing enthusiasm for leaving the main enforcement spot to ore connected AI-driven merchandise and exertion work, telling reporters helium is "excited to power my absorption to a much hands-on relation processing products and technology."

Alongside the ownership change, the institution has flagged a scope of operational shifts — among them workforce outgo cuts and the spinning disconnected of BuzzFeed Studios and Tasty into a standalone entity, Variety reported.

As portion of the governance changes tied to the deal, BuzzFeed's committee is acceptable to turn from 4 members to eight, with Allen Family Digital holding the close to sanction 5 of those incoming directors. Nasdaq agreed to waive its modular requirements for shareholder support and voting rights protections successful this case; BuzzFeed's audit committee had concluded that waiting for a shareholder ballot "would earnestly jeopardize the fiscal viability of the Company," according to the SEC filing.

BuzzFeed missed a $5 cardinal indebtedness outgo astatine the extremity of April, triggering a deadline hold to May 18 to debar a default that the institution had warned could pb to a bankruptcy filing. The institution had besides cautioned investors it could tally retired of wealth earlier year-end and was exploring strategical options. Full-year 2025 gross came successful astatine $185.3 million, down astir 2.4% from the anterior year, portion the nett nonaccomplishment reached $57.7 million. In the astir caller quarter, advertizing income dropped adjacent to 20% and the nett nonaccomplishment totaled $15.1 million, Bloomberg reported.

BuzzFeed banal has fallen 70% since its 12-month precocious past July. The company's valuation erstwhile reached $1.7 cardinal pursuing a $200 cardinal concern from Comcast's NBCUniversal successful 2016, and gross peaked astatine $437 cardinal successful 2022 earlier a sustained diminution led the institution to unopen its quality cognition successful 2023 and merchantability assets including Complex and First We Feast.