House Democrats Press StubHub CEO for Answers Over Ticket Resale Fund: ‘Potential Grift’
Billboard ·
The ranking member of the House Oversight Committee sent a new demand for answers about Eric Baker's firm Andro Capital.
Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are continuing to probe StubHub CEO Eric Baker about ties between the ticket resale platform and his own broker fund.
House Oversight Committee ranking member Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) sent Baker a letter on Thursday (Oct. 22) requesting documents and information about Andro Capital. The letter, first obtained and exclusively reported by Billboard , comes three months after Garcia first opened an investigative inquiry into the fund’s relationship with StubHub.
StubHub disclosed in regulatory filings ahead of its IPO last year that its CEO is also a part-owner and managing partner of Andro, which buys bulk ticket inventory directly from event organizers and then resells them on the secondary market. Baker’s fund has generated revenue of more than $5 million transacting on StubHub since 2022, with StubHub keeping a percentage-based fee of that revenue. An affiliate of Andro, called Colloquy Capital, also has a contract with StubHub to lend short-term financing to other resellers on the platform.
Garcia’s first letter in July was directed to Baker in his capacity as StubHub CEO, seeking records from the publicly traded resale platform to investigate whether it’s engaged in “collusion” with Andro. StubHub denies anything untoward in its relationship with Andro. The company’s lawyers have responded to the Oversight Committee by claiming that Andro is one of several above-board vendors that transparently contribute to StubHub’s overall business.
As conversations remain ongoing between Garcia’s team and StubHub, Thursday’s letter targets Baker instead in his capacity as Andro’s managing partner. This time, the congressman is seeking “information about the role that Andro Capital plays in the ticket market and how the relationship between Andro Capital and StubHub may unfairly raise costs for consumers and limit profits for artists.”
“The financial ties between Andro Capital, its affiliate Colloquy Capital, and StubHub — and your personal connection to all three of these companies — raise concerns that Andro Capital or its affiliates could be receiving favorable placement or other advantages in the resale market at the expense of buyers and sellers of smaller numbers of tickets,” reads the letter.
Specifically, Garcia is asking Baker to provide all communications between Andro and StubHub, as well as an accounting that shows the flow of cash between the two companies. The letter sets a response deadline of Nov. 5.
As was the case with Garcia’s initial StubHub letter in July, Democrats are the minority party in Congress and thus do not have any power to enforce such a demand on Andro. That could change, though, if Democrats flip the House in next month’s midterm elections.
In a statement Thursday, Garcia said, “Eric Baker appears to be using his positions at Andro Capital and StubHub to profit, potentially at the expense of customers, fans and artists. This apparent conflict of interest and potential grift is unacceptable. We are demanding answers.”
Reps for StubHub declined to comment on the letter Thursday. Back in July, a company spokesperson told Billboard , “Eric’s investment in Andro Capital has been disclosed publicly. Andro Capital is a separate company and is one of many vendors we use.”
“StubHub, like many companies, works with vendors to provide additional services for their customers, allowing the StubHub team to focus on its core business,” added the StubHub rep in July. “This relationship with Andro Capital makes up only a small fraction of StubHub’s total revenue.”
In addition to congressional scrutiny, StubHub has also faced legal claims over Baker’s involvement with Andro. A ticket buyer alleged in a lawsuit this summer that he thought StubHub was a “neutral marketplace,” and that he wouldn’t have given his business to the company if he’d known the CEO was also a ticket broker. A judge sent the claims to private arbitration last month, ruling that StubHub’s terms of service prohibit class action litigation.