By Reuters
Filed under: Shopping, Art, Antiques & Collectibles, People, Planning, Spending
NEW YORK — Hedge fund manager Steven A. Cohen has bought a famous Picasso painting from casino mogul Steve Wynn for a record price, according to a report in the New York Post on Tuesday.
Cohen, who runs $15 billion hedge fund firm SAC Capital Advisors, purchased “Le Reve,” a 1932 oil painting of Picasso’s mistress, for $155 million, the New York Post said, citing an unnamed source.
The Post reported it is the highest price a U.S. collector ever paid for an artwork.
Cohen and Wynn, who are both billionaires and well-known art collectors, have a history with this particular Picasso painting.
In 2006, Wynn put his elbow through the canvas of “Le Reve” while showing it to several friends, reportedly a day after agreeing to sell it to Cohen for $139 million, several media outlets reported at the time.
Cohen’s reported acquisition of “Le Reve” comes as his firm continues to face regulatory scrutiny as part of a multi-year federal insider trading probe that has ensnared nine former SAC employees. Earlier this month, SAC Capital agreed to pay a record $616 million fine to settle two lawsuits, the largest-ever U.S. insider trading settlement.
A spokesman for Cohen declined to comment. A spokesperson for Wynn, the chief executive officer of Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN), didn’t respond to a request for comment.