FBI seized phones of billionaire Mark Walter and Guggenheim executive amid federal probe

Federal investigators took the phone and laptop of billionaire Mark Walter and the phone of Guggenheim Investments president Dina DiLorenzo in September, according to sources familiar with the Financial Times report. The seizures are part of a broader probe into accounting and transaction practices at Walter-controlled entities, including the $260 billion asset-management firm Guggenheim and several insurance companies linked to his TWG Group.

Prosecutors are reportedly focusing on revenue accounting for Guggenheim’s private-investments business. Neither Walter nor DiLorenzo has been charged, and the stage of the investigation remains unclear. Guggenheim told the Financial Times that auditors have issued unqualified opinions for the 2024 and 2025 consolidated financial statements of a subsidiary that owns Guggenheim Private Investments.

Walter, who founded Guggenheim in 1999 and serves as chief executive of both Guggenheim Partners and TWG Group, announced a deal to sell the Los Angeles Lakers to a consortium led by Josh Kushner and Bob Iger, valuing the franchise at $12.5 billion. The sale follows disclosures that Walter’s insurance firms held more than $20 billion in investments in affiliated entities, prompting efforts to restructure or sell those holdings.

"Auditors have issued unqualified opinions for the 2024 and 2025 consolidated financial statements of the subsidiary," Guggenheim said in response to the inquiry.

The investigation adds to prior regulatory issues at Guggenheim, including a 2015 settlement of $20 million with the SEC over undisclosed loans and fee practices, and a 2018-2019 SEC review of transactions involving a Malibu property co-owned by Walter.