German publisher Axel Springer is close to buying news site Business Insider in a deal that would value the acquired company at $560 million, according to a report Monday.
The proposed deal, first reported by Re/Code, could be finalized within two weeks.
Business Insider, founded by former Wall Street analyst Henry Blodget, has gained a large audience from its close coverage of Wall Street, technology, and business gossip. Its roots go back to 2007 and the debut of its tech-oriented channel, Silicon Alley Insider.
In January, Axel Springer bought a 7% stake in Business Insider as part of a $25 million funding round that valued the company at $200 million. Last week, Axel Springer was said to be interested in buying a majority stake, although those discussions have shifted to a full acquisition.
Blodget and a representative for Axel Springer both declined to comment to Re/Code.
A deal would be just one more in a series of investments and acquisitions involving digital news companies. Over the summer, for example, NBCUniversal, owned by cable giant Comcast (CMCSA), invested $200 million in Vox Media plus another $200 million in BuzzFeed.
Earlier this year, Axel Springer, which owns the Gernman newspapers Bild and Die Welt had tried to buy the Financial Times, but lost out to Japanese publisher Nikkei.
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