By Jacob Adelman

Mike Tyson has always drawn a crowd. Now the creators of a new investing show on X are counting on the former heavyweight champ to draw investors, including to a company that was the subject of a recent Barron's investigation.

Late Tuesday, Tyson will host the live finale of "Going Public," which Elon Musk's X has embraced as a tentpole of its original programming push. The show's creators have described "Going Public' as "'Shark Tank' meets the 'Apprentice.'" Viewers are introduced to start-ups that have paid to be promoted on the show's episodes.

During the Tuesday finale, which will stream on X's internally controlled "Live" feed, viewers will be presented with a "Click-to-Invest" button to invest in those ventures under a 2012 federal law that allowed shares of private companies to be broadly marketed.

One of the three businesses promoted this season -- a golf-club redeveloper called Omnico whose founders were the subject of a Barron's investigation earlier this month -- doesn't appear to have filed necessary regulatory paperwork to sell its shares. The show's producers haven't responded to Barron's requests for comment. Tyson declined an interview request.

The Tuesday show represents a change of plans: the finale had originally been scheduled for earlier this month. The delay came after Barron's published its article about the founders of Omnico Golf -- Dutch Mendenhall and Amy Vaughn -- the day before it was set to stream.

Going Public's producers "felt the live finale needed to go even further, that you deserved more," they wrote in a June 13 email to the show's mailing list, hours before the finale had been scheduled to stream on X. "So, plans have changed."

Explaining the change, Going Public said on X that it had "a new guest coming in hot."

"When a legend makes time, you move mountains," it elaborated, although it didn't identify Tyson as the guest for several days.

Tyson was paid $75,000 and granted shares of Going Public's production company worth $350,000 to appear on the show and promote it on social media, according to disclosures on Going Public's website.

On Monday, Tyson posted a video promoting the appearance on his own X feed.

"I've learned how to be a killer and sniff out weaknesses in all situations," he said in the video. "These qualities give me the instinctual advantage of spying out a charlatan in any situation."

X, formerly known as Twitter, has described its licensing and distribution deal for Going Public as a key component of its original programming lineup.

"This innovative series is redefining investment access and has been an essential part of our programming push for X's enthusiastic business and finance audience." Mitchell Smith, head of original content at X, said last week in a release promoting Tuesday's live episode.

Over the course of four prerecorded episodes last month, founders of the three featured companies performed adrenaline-fueled stunts to prove their entrepreneurial grit and engaged with sports, cultural and business figures who appear as backers and mentors.

During Tuesday's live show, viewers will be presented with links to investing platform Issuance to buy shares in the companies during the livestreamed finale. The CEO of Issuance, which earns fees for transactions on the platform, is a Going Public creator, Darren Marble.

Viewers have been able to buy shares in two of the Going Public companies in advance of the live finale with Tyson.

As of Monday, visitors to the show's website could follow links to purchase stakes in Employer.com and cashew-based beverage producer Nutcase, the third business presented on the show.

There is no link to invest in Omnico. A search of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's public database found no filing by Omnico -- known as Form C -- that would allow the company to sell shares to the general public.

A real estate fund run by Omnico founders Mendenhall and Vaughn, RAD Diversified REIT, is under investigation by Florida's Office of Financial Regulation, according to a message sent to investors soliciting testimony. Some RAD investors and former employees told Barron's they have been interviewed by Securities and Exchange Commission investigators about the company's practices.

In a promotional email sent to the show's mailing list early Tuesday, Mendenhall was named among those who would appear on the program.

"Investors are able to indicate interest in the Omnico Golf offering and be notified when it opens," the producers wrote.

Write to Jacob Adelman at jacob.adelman@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 24, 2025 16:13 ET (20:13 GMT)

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