Jay-Z and Bacardi have settled their legal dispute over the mismanagement of their joint venture, cognac drinks brand D’ussé.
According to the website thedrinksbusiness, Empire Investments, a Bacardi subsidiary that was managing the daily operations of D’ussé, must buy out the rapper's stake in the brand.
That would leave Bacardi owning at least 75.1% of the company, although Jay-Z will still retain a "significant ownership stake” through his company, SCLiquor.
The dispute started when Jay-Z demanded a buyout over concerns that Empire Investments was mismanaging the brand by not being prepared for a spike in consumer demand.
After Bacardi won the first few battles of arbitration, Jay-Z reportedly questioned the composition of the arbitration panel, accusing one of its members of being racist and another of holding a personal grudge.
In a separate lawsuit, SCLiquor claimed the drinks company was refusing to provide company records for examination to prove that Bacardi was intentionally mismanaging D’ussé to drive the price down.
Much of the dispute centred on the true value of the company, with Jay-Z said to believe it was worth somewhere between US$3mln and US$5mln.