Carl Icahn, the billionaire investor owner who started 2016 by purchasing Pep Boys — Manny, Moe & Jack — has officially joined President-elect Donald Trump's team. Trump has named Icahn a special adviser on issues related to regulatory reform.
The notice from Trump's transition team notes Icahn "will be advising the president in his individual capacity and will not be serving as a federal employee or a special government employee and will not have any specific duties."
Icahn says, "I am proud to serve President-elect Trump as a special adviser on regulatory reform. Under President Obama, America's business owners have been crippled by over $1 trillion in new regulations and over 750 billion hours dealing with paperwork. It's time to break free of excessive regulation and let our entrepreneurs do what they do best: create jobs and support communities. President-elect Trump is serious about helping American families, and regulatory reform wil be a critical component of making America work again."
In December 2015 Icahn, through his Icahn Enterprises L.P., went toe-to-toe with Bridgestone Retail Operations LLC to grab hold of Pep Boys. Icahn won, paying $18.50 a share, or more than $1 billion, for the 800-store chain that was born in Philadelphia. Icahn's final offer was about $165 million more than Bridgestone's initial offer. The deal was finalized in early 2016.
Icahn is trying to extend his reach in the automotive industry. For months he's been working to buy up shares of Federal-Mogul Holdings Corp., and he's recently extended an offer of $9.25 a share for the roughly 20% of the stock he doesn't own. The new deadline for Federal-Mogul to accept Icahn's bid is Jan. 4, 2017.
