U2's lead singer Bono is a co-founder of Elevation Partners, a private equity underwriter (PEU). Rumors have Elevation Partners investing $100 million in Pandora Media, an online music service boosted by the widespread use of IPhones. Users listening to U2 may enrich Bono in multiple ways, song royalties and Pandora profits.
Who knew the wild sounding, Christian hearted Bono from Gloria days would become a PEU? They're known more for worshiping at the altar of annual returns. Did Paul Hewson open Pandora's box? Someone let the PEU's out. They clearly won't go back in, not voluntarily.
Update 2-11-2011: Pandora filed an S-1 with the SEC for a future IPO. Elevation Partners is not on the list of selling stockholders with more than 5% of the company. Pandora is not a listed affiliate of Elevation, however Pandemic Studios is a prior holding. Maybe Bono didn't open the box after all...
Update 2-19-12: Elevation did take a 1.5% stake of Facebook, which nears its IPO. It looks like over $1 billion in profit for Elevtion, well over a four bagger. Will Bono write a song about it?
Update 9-6-23: Elevation Partners website states:
In 2015, Bono (an Elevation Co-Founder and Managing Director) joined TPG Growth as a Special Partner. In 2016 Bono co-founded The Rise Fund, a global social impact fund which invests in seven sectors aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
In other news:
Swedish police have discovered that Spotify is being used as a lucrative money laundering tool. People with “dirty money” will pay for streams in order to collect money as an artist via Spotify’s payout system.
