Merck Mercuriadis, founder and chair of Hipgnosis Song Management (HSM), has announced his intention to exit the firm.
He will step away once the proposed $1.58bn acquisition of Hipgnosis Songs Fund by Blackstone through Lyra Bidco has completed.
Mercuriadis founded HSM in 2018, and stood down as CEO of the firm back in February.
“Six years after founding HSM, I have decided that now is the right time for me to step back from my role as chairman. This is a timely opportunity for me to undertake a strategic shift of focus, and to spend more time advocating on behalf of songwriters to ensure that they are properly compensated for their work,” he said.
The Hipgnosis Songs Fund acquisition still hinges on the approval of both scheme shareholders at the upcoming court meeting, and Song shareholders at the general meeting.
The court must also sanction the scheme at the hearing, which will take place on 8 July at 10am. The general meeting will follow immediately afterwards, at 10.15am.
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Qasim Abbas, senior managing director, Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, added: “On behalf of Blackstone, I would like to thank Merck for his support and contribution to HSM. Merck’s dedication to songwriters and his advocacy on their behalf is second to none and we respect and will seek to build on the platform he founded.
“We are committed to the asset class, having – through Hipgnosis Songs Assets – acquired the catalogues of some of the world’s most important songwriters and artists in the three years we have partnered with Merck and HSM.
“With a strong senior management team now in place, the firm is well positioned to capitalise on the growing market for music rights.”
