(Reuters) – Hip-hop star Jay-Z is buying a Scandinavian music streaming company for $56 million to add to a business empire that has spanned clothing and sports bars.
Project Panther Bidco Ltd, a company controlled by the 45-year-old rapper, said on Friday it had agreed to buy Sweden-listed Aspiro for 464 million Swedish crowns ($56 million) in cash.
Shares in Aspiro, which runs music streaming service WiMP, leapt 59 percent in early trading to the bid level of 1.05 crowns per share.
Jay-Z, real name Shawn Corey Carter, is one of the world’s best-selling music artists of all time, having sold more than 100 million records. Forbes estimated last year that his net worth was $520 million.