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TWG Global Denies Fraud as $12.5B Lakers Deal Looms

8/26/2026

Summary

TWG Denies Fraud

TWG Global, led by Mark Walter, denied fraud allegations in a Wednesday statement.
TWG said it is not selling sports assets at fire-sale prices despite the $12.5 billion Lakers deal.
TWG submitted a plan to purchase up to $6.5 billion of affiliated assets from the insurers to reduce exposure.
Delaware Life restated affiliated investments from 3% to 42%, prompting S&P Global to change its outlook to negative.

Summary

LeBron Loan

LeBron James borrowed $300 million from Guggenheim Partners in 2018 for his LLC.
The loan was securitized with his non-NBA earnings, including his lifetime Nike deal.
In 2022 Midwestern insurers gave James cash after his $97 million Lakers extension.
Insurers bought nearly $60 million of 34-year bonds at a 5.75% interest rate, maturing in 2049.
NBA officials approved the loan and bond, while James’s spokesperson said he has no affiliation with the lenders.

History

Historical Context

On September 15 2008 Lehman Brothers, the fourth-largest U.S. investment bank, filed Chapter 11 after its leverage hit roughly 31 to 1 and $4.3 billion of mortgage-backed securities collapsed, triggering a global credit crunch and a 4.5 % Dow drop. The fallout tightened financing rules, prompting later securitization-style sports-team purchases that regulators such as the Federal Reserve and S&P Global now scrutinize.

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TWG Denies Fraud

TWG Global, led by Mark Walter, denied fraud allegations in a Wednesday statement.
TWG said it is not selling sports assets at fire-sale prices despite the $12.5 billion Lakers deal.
TWG submitted a plan to purchase up to $6.5 billion of affiliated assets from the insurers to reduce exposure.
Delaware Life restated affiliated investments from 3% to 42%, prompting S&P Global to change its outlook to negative.

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