London Based Property Developers and Rangers

[chilledbear 16]

Story in the papers tomorrow??

[chilledbear 16]

Two London-based property developers, a �£33m bid to buy Rangers . . . the plot thickens again

Published on 5 Mar 2010

 

 

Michael Grant

It is too soon for Rangers supporters to know what to make of the revelation that a new �£33m bid is being lined up to take the club out of Sir David Murrayâ��s hands, but there will be plenty who looked at the calendar and expected to be reading about something like this around now.

 

Cynics suspect that the timing is far from coincidental. Ibrox season-ticket renewal forms will be sent out in a month or so, after all. What better way to drum up some interest than by letting it be known that the club�s desperate financial situation could soon be relieved? New money! New signings! New contract offers! Roll up, roll up, guarantee your seat for the new campaign!

Forgive the scepticism, although it is unavoidable to anyone who has followed the laboured saga of the Rangers sale since Murray stood down as chairman and reiterated his desire to sell last August. Until more is known about the motivation and spending power of London-based property developer Andrew Ellis, none of the faithful will be doing any cartwheels down Paisley Road West about the idea of him taking ownership.

Having said that, no self-respecting businessman would allow his name to be attached to a baseless marketing ploy to help Rangers flog season tickets to an otherwise wary and questioning fanbase. Ellis and David Bulstrode, the other name linked to this new approach, clearly have an interest in buying Rangers and have posted notice of a proposed �£33m bid once they have had a look at the books. Inevitably, the early information on their bid is so sketchy that there are far more questions than answers. Chief among them, of course, is how much money they have and why they are interested in spending it on Rangers.

Lloyds Banking Group and Murray ââ?¬â?? in that order ââ?¬â?? may be satisfied with a Ã?£33m bid for ownership but all that does is change the tyres on the car. It doesnââ?¬â?¢t get it moving. There are two elements to the sale of Rangers. It makes perfect sense for Lloyds to accept this offer, recover all of what they are owed, and wash their hands of a football club which has mired them in bad press and criticism. For Murray, too, a bid of this scale might persuade him that he can get out of football relatively unscathed. Rangersââ?¬â?¢ last reported liabilities stood at Ã?£31m although it is believed the current bank debt has reduced a little to Ã?£27m. Ã?£33m would therefore cover the current debt with Ã?£6m left over for Murray, which was precisely the sum he paid for Rangers back in 1989. That all seems quite neat and tidy.

What we donâ��t know is whether Ellis and Bulstrode have �£33m or �£133m. Thatâ��s what really matters to Rangers the football club rather than Rangers the business. New owners are going to be able to advance the club only in phase two of any takeover. They need to have money to buy them in the first place, then they need to have money to spend on new signings, new contract offers, and all the endless other matters which drain cash out of a club. That need not be multi-millions in Rangersâ�� case so long as a tighter, more efficient business plan is imposed than has been the case in recent years at Ibrox. But manager Walter Smith will stay only if there is money to spend on transfers at long last, and the same goes for Kris Boyd in terms of a new contract.

Naturally the very phrase ââ?¬Å?property developerââ?¬Â will be chilling to some supporters. Whatââ?¬â?¢s in it for a couple of London-based businessmen, with previous interests in QPR, to stick their noses into Rangers and plough millions into an SPL club which, despite its huge infrastructure, is chained and anchored by Scottish footballââ?¬â?¢s limited broadcasting income? The thought occurs that Murray Park could be demolished, the land used for housing, and some of the profits used to build a new and smaller complex elsewhere. That looks all well and good on paper, but the best of luck to any businessmen who try to persuade fans that it would be good for Rangers.

Murray has always been emphatic about one thing when it comes to the sale of the club: he would pass on the ownership only to a party he was convinced had the clubâ��s best interests at heart. Things arenâ��t so clear now that Lloyds are on the scene demanding their money back. It was in the middle of January that the club was said to have rejected an �£18m approach from a consortium including Ibrox directors Dave King and Paul Murray, along with two other businessmen who were understood to be wealthy Rangers supporters. That was entirely unconnected to this new interest from London. What does King do now, if anything?

Donald Muir (the enemy within), the man some fans call ââ?¬Å?the enemy withinââ?¬Â, was a Murray appointment to the board and is perceived as being there to represent Lloydsââ?¬â?¢ interests and get their money back. It is understood that Muir was the man who revealed details of the Ellis bid to the other Rangers directors at the start of the week.

If Muir thinks Ellis is right for Rangers, and the money is there to back up a bid, this saga has taken a dramatic new turn.

[maineflyer 0]

I remain entirely sceptical. I don't believe this is how a genuine deal will emerge.

[ian1964 10,578]

Rangers Football Club is at the centre of a �£33m takeover bid.

 

A property developer made the offer for the Ibrox side on Monday through his company.

 

The 41-year-old is understood to be leading a consortium to take the boardroom reins of the Scottish Premier League side which is in debt to Lloyds Banking Group to the tune of around �£30m.

 

It is believed the London-based businessman is linked to another wealthy property developer who has made his fortune from deals in the affluent Knightsbridge area of London.

 

The offer was submitted to director Donald Muir, the man whose appointment to the Rangers board last October caused controversy among the club’s supporters.

 

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/rangers-faces-33m-takeover-bid-1.1011501

[Guest bluesandroyals]

the plot thickens,does the 33 million buy you a debt free Rangers?

[OnlyOneAmoruso 0]

I remain entirely sceptical. I don't believe this is how a genuine deal will emerge.

 

This smacks of Murray spin.

[ian1964 10,578]

RANGERS were at the centre of a dramatic bidding war last night with TWO offers on the table for the debt-ridden club.

 

A group of London-based tycoons are putting together a bid but face a rival Far East consortium in the battle - with the deal expected to top �£60MILLION.

 

Ex-chairman Sir David Murray - who owns a 92 per cent stakeholding - has consistently said he will only sell to people he believes can take Rangers forward.

 

Last night a source admitted: "Rangers is definitely on the table and the big-money men are beginning to circle."

 

The London group of property high-flyers, backed by a Guernsey-based finance house, have already held talks with bankers Lloyds about taking on the club's �£30million debt.

 

And they have tabled an offer to take over the Ibrox club to the bank's representative on the board, Donald Muir

 

If it's accepted they will then make a bid for Sir David's stakeholding.

 

Last night the source told The Scottish Sun: "Whoever wants Gers had better realise it's going to cost them �£60million.

 

"It remains to be seen if either of these bids will be successful."

 

Both the London group and the Far Eastern consortium have said they will clear the club's debt.

 

This effectively blows an �£18million bid by Rangers director Dave King and Scots motor tycoon Douglas Park out the water.

 

South Africa-based businessman King and Park offered to clear just 60p in each pound of the club's debts four months ago, but their scheme never got off the ground.

 

Sir David stepped down as chairman last August.

 

It remains to be seen if this offer will meet with his approval. Sir David bought the club, managed by Walter Smith, for �£6million in 1988.

 

http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/news/2881226/Tycoons-bidding-war-for-Rangers.html

[ascender 352]

More smoke and mirrors? Who knows. Main thing is we're playing well on the pitch and are making progress off it, so we just have to be patient I guess.

[Bluedell 5,408]

Whether there is any truth in it or not, it appears to have provoked a response......

[alexscottislegend 2,173]

I remain entirely sceptical. I don't believe this is how a genuine deal will emerge.

So how will it emerge? It would be very difficult for the papers not to get wind of something before it is actually signed and sealed.