Well, that was fast. You know that old saying about where there's smoke, there's fire? Let's just say that things aren't looking particularly rosy for Mark Walter and his TWG Global group, with federal investigators scrutinizing billions of dollars in transactions involving his insurance businesses. We're talking potentially $20 billion here, which explains why Walter has been busy unloading high-profile sports assets since August.

     

From the outside, it looks like a deliberate effort to generate liquidity. First, Walter unloaded his controlling stake in the Los Angeles Lakers at a $12.5 billion valuation for the NBA franchise. That happened back in August. Then, in September, he sold his 12.8% stake in Chelsea Football Club. There's word on the street that the LA Sparks are up for grabs too, for around $700 million.