CONFIMRED

[bcubed]

I completely agree with Stranded. We are a club that is still technically on the brink of liquidation so for me any new owners that can prove they have enough funds to keep us going for at least another 18 to 24 months get a big thumbs up from me.

Yeah don't get me wrong - at this stage, anything is better than staying with Dai and going bust. But I'm not sure that on paper they're going to turn us into the next Brighton ... but then beggars can't be choosers.

Right now I think we'd all be happy with being the next Rotherham.

Indeed

[West Stand Man]

I've taken a few days to process the situation and I still feel a little uneasy about the group who have supposedly been given exclusivity. I haven't read the past ten or so pages, so some of this may have come up already.

If it is Chiron Sports Group, their website notes they're funded by Apeiron Investment Group and Infinitas Capital - who both appear to be private investment/venture capital groups. These sort of groups are purely focused on getting a return on their investment within a short time period (typically 3-5 years) and have short term objectives for this reason. If they get us promoted within a couple of seasons, I imagine we'd be up for sale instantly.

There's a reference to IPO expertise, which I can't imagine would be suitable for a club of our size.

The website has a huge amount of corporate jargon which doesn't say anything. Typically that suggests a complete absence of any meaningful information.

One of the two primary people listed on their website (Sam Helmy) is listed as being an investor in Leyton Orient - which could be problematic, due to rules of shared ownership. That said, he's also noted as being a 'buy-side advisor' for the takeover of Bristol Rovers - so he may not be directly involved.

A takeover of this sort will likely bring short term stability, which is what's needed in the current situation, but I'm not convinced by the medium-to-long term goals of the group and I feel we'd be at risk of financial issues again should be venture capital groups decide to stop investing (as it appears they are the ones with the money).

I'm far from excited by this group.

If they can turn us from a loss making disaster into a profitable business that has real sale value inside 3 to 5 years I shall be reasonably content. The strong implication is that we'd have to have a successful team for that to happen - and that sounds good.

[WestYorksRoyal]

A John Madejski or a Steve Bloom is incredibly rare. We're still lucky to have had SJM; our profile, facilities and recent PL history is mostly down to him and means we still have plenty of interest from buyers even in our current state.

Mostly, you get big egos, sportswashing, property developers looking at real estate assets and investors hoping they can generate a profit. If we're getting the latter of those, I'll definitely take that over the others. I'd much rather people experienced in sports trying to grow us for their own financial gain over another egotistical billionaire treating us like some expensive toy to play around with and then discard. We'll probably never have a benevolent billionaire who wants to make us into the next Brighton just because it's good for the town. These guys don't grow on trees.

[SouthDownsRoyal]

I completely agree with Stranded. We are a club that is still technically on the brink of liquidation so for me any new owners that can prove they have enough funds to keep us going for at least another 18 to 24 months get a big thumbs up from me.

Yeah don't get me wrong - at this stage, anything is better than staying with Dai and going bust. But I'm not sure that on paper they're going to turn us into the next Brighton ... but then beggars can't be choosers.

Right now I think we'd all be happy with being the next Rotherham.

Lol true

[tmesis]

And obviously, they may not get EFL approval or it may not even be the group we think it is.

Can you imagine being at the EFL and having doubts about this group (and the ability to block the sale).

Would they block a group for being unsuitable, or is being "not as bad as Dai" the yardstick?

[rabidbee]

That's why you have clear regulations and measures in place, to make it as much as possible an objective analysis and not a subjective conclusion. Presumably, their remit fairly conservative - rather than judging whether prospective buyers are suitable, they evaluate whether there are any causes to disqualify them from buying a club. In the absence of any evidence to negate the sale, it gets approved. And they presumably have fairly limited powers to really investigate those questions anyway.

[SouthDownsRoyal]

I've taken a few days to process the situation and I still feel a little uneasy about the group who have supposedly been given exclusivity. I haven't read the past ten or so pages, so some of this may have come up already.

If it is Chiron Sports Group, their website notes they're funded by Apeiron Investment Group and Infinitas Capital - who both appear to be private investment/venture capital groups. These sort of groups are purely focused on getting a return on their investment within a short time period (typically 3-5 years) and have short term objectives for this reason. If they get us promoted within a couple of seasons, I imagine we'd be up for sale instantly.

There's a reference to IPO expertise, which I can't imagine would be suitable for a club of our size.

The website has a huge amount of corporate jargon which doesn't say anything. Typically that suggests a complete absence of any meaningful information.

One of the two primary people listed on their website (Sam Helmy) is listed as being an investor in Leyton Orient - which could be problematic, due to rules of shared ownership. That said, he's also noted as being a 'buy-side advisor' for the takeover of Bristol Rovers - so he may not be directly involved.

A takeover of this sort will likely bring short term stability, which is what's needed in the current situation, but I'm not convinced by the medium-to-long term goals of the group and I feel we'd be at risk of financial issues again should be venture capital groups decide to stop investing (as it appears they are the ones with the money).

I'm far from excited by this group.

I don’t know who has signed exclusively but anyone is better than being wound up in the summer

[Snowflake Royal]

That's why you have clear regulations and measures in place, to make it as much as possible an objective analysis and not a subjective conclusion. Presumably, their remit fairly conservative - rather than judging whether prospective buyers are suitable, they evaluate whether there are any causes to disqualify them from buying a club. In the absence of any evidence to negate the sale, it gets approved. And they presumably have fairly limited powers to really investigate those questions anyway.

This. You'd think after years of this with Dai, people would understand what the test actually is now.

Do they have proof of funds sufficient to buy the club and run it for X period?
Do they have an unspent criminal conviction or other issue, like misconduct charges from the FL that would bar them from being a football club company director?

That's essentially it.

Nothing to do with how they intend to run the club. Nothing to do with how competent they are. What moral fibre they have.

[East Grinstead Royal]

Nor if they have a criminal record for, say, fraud?

[Crusader Royal]

They also have to show the source of their funds, which I think is a common anti money laundering requirement.

[Orion1871]

Everyone knows what the test does. That's the point, we can all see the major flaws in it and people want it to change.

[Hound]

I completely agree with Stranded. We are a club that is still technically on the brink of liquidation so for me any new owners that can prove they have enough funds to keep us going for at least another 18 to 24 months get a big thumbs up from me.

Yeah don't get me wrong - at this stage, anything is better than staying with Dai and going bust. But I'm not sure that on paper they're going to turn us into the next Brighton ... but then beggars can't be choosers.

Right now I think we'd all be happy with being the next Rotherham.

Just less northern

[Snowflake Royal]

Everyone knows what the test does. That's the point, we can all see the major flaws in it and people want it to change.

Clearly you don't read a lot of posts on here.

[Franchise FC]

In the day’s most unsurprising news, it appears that the input from William Storey seems to have actually slowed the sale process

[Snowflake Royal]

In the day’s most unsurprising news, it appears that the input from William Storey seems to have actually slowed the sale process

Which just shows how stupid Dai is. With only the gentlest of googling, we all knew he was an attenti9n whore without the money or capability to make a genuine offer

[Royalwaster]

However even Brogue fell for it and started this thread ...

[Brogue]

However even Brogue fell for it and started this thread ...

Well I fell for a story by a respected journalist in one of the most respected newspapers…. But yes. I was hoodwinked by the man himself who I had regular communication with

[tmesis]

That's why you have clear regulations and measures in place, to make it as much as possible an objective analysis and not a subjective conclusion. Presumably, their remit fairly conservative - rather than judging whether prospective buyers are suitable, they evaluate whether there are any causes to disqualify them from buying a club. In the absence of any evidence to negate the sale, it gets approved. And they presumably have fairly limited powers to really investigate those questions anyway.

Well, yes, it was more of a Devil's Advocate question than a genuine one.

I'm just saying, can you imagine the reaction if they refuse to sanction the takeover. I'd be a very brave call to make.

[Crusader Royal]

That's why you have clear regulations and measures in place, to make it as much as possible an objective analysis and not a subjective conclusion. Presumably, their remit fairly conservative - rather than judging whether prospective buyers are suitable, they evaluate whether there are any causes to disqualify them from buying a club. In the absence of any evidence to negate the sale, it gets approved. And they presumably have fairly limited powers to really investigate those questions anyway.

Well, yes, it was more of a Devil's Advocate question than a genuine one.

I'm just saying, can you imagine the reaction if they refuse to sanction the takeover. I'd be a very brave call to make.

As others have said I find it unthinkable that NH will waste everyone’s time by putting forward potential purchasers who won’t fly through the tests.
But if potential owners are fraudsters with no money I would rather the EFL did their job and rejected them now rather than worried about a Twitter storm. They would need to clearly explain their reasoning of course.

[Sutekh]

So, after the club is finally sold, really looking forward to the 13 yr old trolls on tw@tter going into meLOLtdown over the lack of spending.