Source: Robert Kamau / Getty
Jay-Z has turned his legal battle with Bacardi into an international conflict by taking the fight to their home turf. According to an exclusive from AllHipHop.com, the billionaire rapper recently filed to move his $2.5 billion dispute with the popular spirit company directly to their global headquarters in Bermuda.
In 2012, the two parties first came together via Jay-Z’s company SC Liquors and a stateside Bacardi subsidiary. Per their 50/50 ownership deal, they also agreed to co-create and co-promote the premium cognac D’USSÉ. And after nine successful years of partnership, the entertainer decided to invoke a “contractual put option,” by which Bacardi would buy out his stake. However, the company allegedly disagreed with Jay’s $2.5B valuation of his half, claiming it was less than one-fifth that amount.
So in a bit of role reversal, Carter offered to buy out Bacardi’s half of the deal for $1.5 billion, yet the company still refused to part with its half. And that is why Jay-Z now believes the spirit brand is being shady with the numbers.
“Based on those events, SC is now preparing to bring litigation against Bacardi in Bermuda, where Bacardi is incorporated and headquartered (the ‘Bermuda Action’), for procuring a breach of D’Usse’s Operating Agreement under Bermudian law,” the Bermudan paperwork says.
“In aid of that contemplated case, SC seeks this Court’s assistance to obtain relevant evidence from certain investors in Bacardi and/or its affiliates that are found within this Court’s jurisdiction,” it adds. “SC therefore respectfully requests that this Court approve the application and permit service of the proposed subpoenas seeking documents to aid its anticipated Bermuda Action.”
The action comes less than three months after TMZ reported on a prior suit by Carter in the U.S. related to the matter. According to the docs, SC Liquors found the urgent need to “monitor the conduct of [Bacardi’s] business to protect SC’s rights” as co-owner, and they demanded to know “the location of all warehouses storing D’Usse barrels, bottles, and accessories.”
So far, neither party has given any official statement on the current matter. But what do you think this means for the future of Jay-Z’s deal with Bacardi and for D’USSÉ?
