Thursday, 14th October 2010
The Liverpool takeover saga proceeded at breakneck speed yesterday and is showing no signs of slowing down today. Latest reports, as yet unconfirmed, point to US hedge fund Mill Financial as Liverpool’s new owners after they bought Tom Hicks’ shareholding last night – the group were already believed to be in possession of George Gillett’s shares.
Should Mill Financial, if they are in control, move to repay all the debt owed to the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the penalty fees imposed, then they would be free to do as they wished with the Premier League side. The guarantees Hicks and Gillett gave to RBS and chairman Martin Broughton over the composition of the board and who could sell the club would no longer be valid and RBS’ power over the process would be over.
The position of New England Sports Ventures, who had an agreement with the club remains unclear. NESV partner Tom Werner was reportedly preparing to fly to London, yet Hicks’ bombshell about his shares going to Mill Financial has meant Werner has called off his trip. Meanwhile speculation is mounting over whether Mill Financial are working on behalf of another bidder. In yet another twist Liverpool and RBS are also due back at the High Court today at 2pm to overturn the injunction Hicks won in Texas last night to halt the sales process.
Update: It is being reported by Press Association Sport that Hicks remains in control of his shares and has not sold to Mill Financial. As with anything in this saga, the full picture is still far from clear.
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