DigitalBridge Group

Refresh delta (since 2026-07-01)

What changed

1. The merger closed on 2026-09-30 at $16.00 cash. Merger Sub I merged into DigitalBridge, and every Class A, Class B and Performance common share became the right to $16.00 in cash. Operating Company common units got the same $16.00 [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, 0001104659-26-112148, Items 2.01/5.01]. Parent is Duncan Holdco LLC, wholly owned by SoftBank Group Overseas GK. The surviving company sits under Duncan Holdco II and III. The money came from an equity commitment from SoftBank Group Overseas GK plus DigitalBridge's own cash [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, Item 5.01]. Every director except Marc Ganzi stepped down. Ganzi's unvested PSUs and restricted stock rolled over rather than being cashed out. Some award holders are expected to reinvest part of their proceeds into Duncan Holdco II [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, Items 2.01/5.02].
2. The common is gone from the NYSE. Trading was suspended before the open on 2026-09-30. The NYSE filed Form 25-NSE for the Class A common the same day [SEC: 25-NSE, 2026-09-30, 0000876661-26-000800].
3. The preferreds survive as securities but are leaving the exchange. Series H, I and J stay outstanding as preferred stock of the surviving company [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, Item 2.01]. DigitalBridge told the NYSE on 2026-09-01 that it would voluntarily delist them, and filed its own Form 25 covering all three [SEC: Form 25, 2026-09-22, 0001104659-26-109412]. They were expected off the NYSE before the open on 2026-10-05 [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, Item 3.01].
4. The change-of-control conversion right is worth less than the market price. Each preferred holder may convert into cash at a set amount [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, Item 3.03]. The amount is $16.00 × the lesser of ($25 ÷ $16) and each series' Share Cap (adjusted for the 1-for-4 reverse splitReverse stock splitMerging several shares into one to lift the share price. It changes nothing about what the company is worth, and is usually done to keep a listing or to prepare a larger raise.).

Sources: caps, cash amounts and notice dates [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, Item 3.03]; closes; last column. The conversion date is 20 to 35 days after each notice. The company may redeem any series before its conversion date. Shares not converted stay outstanding. In plain terms: at these prices, converting gets a holder less cash than selling. Whether to convert is the holder's choice; this file records the arithmetic, not a recommendation. Label conflict: the 8-K calls Series I 7.15%, but the 2026-09-22 Form 25 lists it as 7.125%. Unresolved. 5. SEC reporting is set to end, but has not yet. After each Form 25 takes effect, the company "intends to file … certifications on Form 15" to suspend its Section 13(a) and 15(d) reporting for both the common and the preferreds [SEC: 8-K, 2026-09-30, Item 3.01]. As of 2026-10-08 no Form 15 is on EDGAR. The newest filings are Forms 4 (2026-10-02), eight S-8 POS deregistrations, the 25-NSE and the closing 8-K, all on 2026-09-30 [SEC: submissions CIK0001679688, fetched 2026-10-08]. Once Form 15 is filed, preferred holders lose 10-QForm 10-QThe quarterly version of the annual report. Lighter, and not audited. and 10-KForm 10-KA company’s audited annual report to the US regulator. The most complete thing it publishes. disclosure along with the exchange listing. 6. A deal the July dossier did not record. On 2026-05-23 DigitalBridge agreed to buy ArcLight Capital Partners (power and electric infrastructure) for up to $1.05B: $650M base plus up to $400M contingent on ArcLight earnings for 2027–2029. It was conditioned on the SoftBank merger closing [SEC: 10-Q, 2026-08-04, 0001679688-26-000115]. Whether ArcLight has closed is not found in the 2026-09-30 8-K.

What held

The fee-machine description in Lenses 1–7 and 9–10 is unchanged and now historical. The Q2 10-Q still showed a $0.01 quarterly common dividend and $14.66M of quarterly preferred dividends [SEC: 10-Q, 2026-08-04]. The Hernandez punitive verdict ($92M company share) still had no judgment entered as of that 10-Q [SEC: 10-Q, 2026-08-04]. It now sits with the private, SoftBank-owned company.

Stock-Price Catalysts — re-run

The last catalyst happened: closing and delisting on 2026-09-30. The common stayed pinned near $16 from July. Yahoo prints $15.87 (08-04), $15.94 (08-07, 08-11) and $15.91 (09-14). Nothing in the filing record suggests a regulatory scare moved it.

Forward Projection — re-run (grading the deal-arb frame)

A correction to the July file. It quoted the preferreds' coupon (7.125–7.15% of $25 par) as their yield. In June they already traded near $14.91–$15.16, so the yield on price was about 11.8–12.0%. The market was already pricing the stack well below par before the close.

Bull vs Bear — re-run

The bull (thin, safe spread) was paid in full and on time. The bear's break scenario ($12–14) did not occur. For the preferreds, the bear point the July file missed is now the main one: illiquid, unlisted, and soon unreported paper owned by a SoftBank subsidiary.

Devil's Advocate — re-run

The July short case ("the spread is too tight for that tail") lost on outcome. On process it was a reasonable flag: a Japanese acquirer of US AI-adjacent infrastructure did face CFIUS and foreign-investment review. The filings read do not show whether any mitigation terms were agreed.

Lenses 1–7, 9, 10 and 14: carried from the previous dossier, now historical. Lens 14 Q18 (what happens to the $822M preferred stack) is partly answered above. Whether the surviving company redeems before the conversion dates is still open.