Updated According to fresh reports, a group of global investors headed up by London-based businessman Vatche Manoukian has joined American billionaire, Dan Friedkin, in the queue of investors interested in buying out Farhad Moshiri’s majority stake.
Both BBC Sport and Sky Sports understand that Friedkin, who is President and Owner of Serie A club Roma and has an estimated personal fortune of around $6bn, has registered his interest in buying the Blues following the collapse of 777 Partners’ long-running bid at the end of last month.
Reports in Italy, however, suggest that the Friedkin offer is for a 45%, non-controlling stake in the Club.
Now, Matt Slater of The Athletic, says that Manoukian’s consortium has weighed in with a £400m all-equity bid which means Moshiri has three or four firm approaches to consider, depending on which reports you believe.
Born in Lebanon and educated in Cyprus and the UK, Manoukian is the nephew of an Armenian property and entertainment tycoon and partner in IMS Digital Ventures, a technology investment firm, and, according to The Athletic, his consortium, which has until now been waiting in the wings, is made up of Persian Gulf royalty and investors from the United States.
Local Merseyside businessmen, Andy Bell and George Downing, are thought to be at the head of the queue having gained the financial support of Michael Dell’s merchant bank BDT & MSD Partners and reportedly agreed to meet Moshiri’s valuation of the Club.
Their offer is said to be a mix of “fresh equity and a £350m loan” from Dell’s investment vehicle secured against Everton Stadium that would refinance the bulk of the Club’s existing debts
MSP Sports Capital, through which a consortium of 13 investors that included Bell, Downing and Moshiri himself, loaned Everton £158m last summer, are also said to have lodged a bid that Slater describes as a “complex mix of equity and debt” even though they passed up the chance to take a 50% + 1 share controlling stake in the Club in mid-April.
Meanwhile A-Cap, who have assumed many of 777’s assets as part of the latter firm’s restructuring process, were also reported to have tabled an offer of their own.
John Textor, the billionaire part owner of Crystal Palace, has withdrawn from the running , according to David Hellier of Bloomberg.
Moshiri is thought to be eyeing a quick sale having reached a Share Purchase Agreement with 777 Partners back in September and the takeover situation appears to now be gathering some momentum with the troubled Floridian private equity firm out of the picture.
San Diego-born Friedkin is a film producer, conservationist and the heir to Gulf States Toyota, which distributes the Japanese automobile manufacturer’s cars in the United States. He bought Roma from James Pallotta for $700m five years ago but is not yet believed to have submitted a formal offer to Moshiri despite reports to the contrary.
The previous image accompanying this story showed Bob Manoukian, not Vatche, and has been updated accordingly