Manoj Bhargava is an Indian-American businessman and philanthropist with a staggering net worth in 2024
Find out more about him.
After the revelation that The Arena Group was losing its license to Sports Illustrated (SI) and terminating employees connected to the SI brand, SI is currently in a state of uncertainty.
The unstable scenario surrounding the continuing discussions between Authentic Brands Group (ABG), the owner of SI, and Arena has given rise to hot hashtags on social media, such as #RIPSI and “Sports Illustrated” Friday.
Who is Arena Group owner Manoj Bhargava, bio, age, family, wife, education, companies and net worth
In an open interview, ABG CEO Jamie Salter disclosed the involvement of Manoj Bhargava, the creator of 5-Hour Energy, who has a majority share in Arena. The intricacy has increased due to Bhargava’s engagement in August, later events, and layoffs in December.
Although Bhargava’s financial interest in Arena is still unknown, Salter highlighted his part in the rising hostilities. Contractually speaking, Salter is in a better position because Arena acknowledged that it had missed a payment, which resulted in a $45 million termination charge.
Manoj Bhargava might be my new hero lol he sounds very interesting, might have to try his "5 hour energy" drink pic.twitter.com/fBd0GtaufV
— Me 💜🩶💚🇦🇺 (@Melissa07037879) January 19, 2024
Questions arise about SI’s future without Arena, and uncertainty lingers regarding staff contracts and potential reallocation to a new publisher.
A remark from an authentic representative implies that existing agreements are with Arena. Salter’s comments shed light on the complexities of the continuing conflict, and the future of SI and its employees is still unclear.
Since then, Manoj Bhargava has become the talk of the town, with many people trying to know more about him. So, here’s what we know about him:
Who is Manoj Bhargava?
Manoj Bhargava is an Indian-American businessman and philanthropist. He has been in the news because his majority stake in Arena Group triggered chaos, creating the uncertainty surrounding Sports Illustrated.
The Arena Group board had terminated the employment of CEO Ross Levinsohn, and named Manoj Bhargava as interim Chief Executive Officer back in 2024 before accepting the resignation of Manoj as CEO in January 2024 to avoid a conflict of interest.
He was born in 1953 in Lucknow, India. In 1967, he, along with his family, moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. However, he is currently living in Farmington Hills, Michigan, US.
After high school graduation, he attended Princeton University for one year in 1972. Later on, Bhargava won a math scholarship to an “elite private academy” called The Hill School.
Bhargava is married to Sadhna since 35 year old and has one child, a son named Shaan.
He is currently 71 years old.
His career
Following graduation, Manoj Bhargava traveled between the United States and India, taking on a variety of professions before joining his family’s manufacturing company. Among his successful business endeavors was the 2003 establishment of 5-Hour Energy.
Bhargava diversified with ventures like MicroDose Life Sciences and ETC Capital. In 2013, Forbes estimated his net worth to be $1.5 billion, despite legal hurdles. Bhargava promised to donate 99% of his fortune to charitable causes, helping organizations such as the Hans Foundation.
He added hydration drink brands and Freelancer Television Broadcasting to his portfolio in 2023. Notably, Bhargava became the majority owner of The Arena Group, which owns a number of magazine brands, in August 2023.
Since the June 2019 news of Sports Illustrated owner Authentic Brands Group selling print and digital publishing rights for that brand to Arena Group (then known as TheMaven), there have been countless stories about potential financial issues at TheMaven/Maven/Arena but some of those issues seemingly went away around the August news of 5 Hour Energy founder Manoj Bhargava purchasing a 65 percent stake in the company.
But a Thursday release from Arena Group of about 100-plus group-wide layoffs (although, that reportedly is not specific to SI) contains some more uncertainty about Bhargava’s purchase.
Born: 1953 (age 71 years), Lucknow
Children: Shaan Bhargava
Spouse: Sadhna Bhargav
Organizations founded: Billions in Change, Innovation Ventures, LLC
Education: Princeton University (dropped out)
Known for: 5-hour Energy brand
The net worth of Manoj Bhargava
He has an estimated net worth of about $1.3 billion.
Weeks after Manoj Bhargava, the founder of 5-Hour Energy, introduced himself to employees of Arena, including SI, as their new leader.
In 2015, Bhargava pledged 99% of his net worth to improving the well-being of the world's less fortunate#SportsIllustrated
1/— Justice is Served🟧 (@pleasesaveour) January 19, 2024