Taxpayer Could Assume Control Of Liverpool
Premier League club Liverpool could be owned by the taxpayer if a new owner doesn’t step in to clear the Royal Bank of Scotland’s £237m loan to the club by 6th October.??
Liverpool’s company secretary Ian Silvester said: ‘From what I understand, and that’s all I can say, the urgency is there due to the pressure from the banks, so I would anticipate that something will be happening within the next four to six weeks or so.’ ??
The loan must either be repaid or rolled over and unless a deal is struck with one of the interested parties involved in take over negotiations, RBS would assume control of the club and run it as a wholly-owned subsidiary.
When the loans last required refinancing in April former British Airways chairman Martin Broughton was installed by RBS as club chairman.
Those said to interested in buying the club are Chinese businessman Kenny Huang, Syrian Yahya Kirdi, the Kuwaiti Kharafi Group and the US private-equity firm Rhone Group.
If a deal isn’t completed in the next two months the RBS could put the club’s parent company, Kop Football Holdings, into administration – meaning a 9 point deduction according to Premier League rules.
