Josimar are reporting that, according to “multiple sources in Belgium”, two main creditors of 777 Partners – former owner Bruno Venanzi and shareholders of Standard Liege’s stadium – have instructed their lawyers to begin proceedings to attempt to seize the private equity firm’s assets in the country.
777, the would-be owners of Everton if their takeover bid is ever approved by the Premier League, hold a majority stake in Standard but their ownership of the club has been plagued by difficulties, including transfer bans, a general lack of investment in the squad and the club almost failing to be granted a license to play in the Belgian Pro League this season due to unpaid player salaries.
Now, Josimar and DH report that Venanzi and the shareholders of the Immobilière du Standard, the company which owned the Stade de Sclessin (which include former players like Nacer Chadli and Axel Witsel), are taking action after 777 failed to deliver two tranches of monies owed, the most recent on 15 April, coincidentally also the date by which Josh Wander’s firm needed to repay MSP Sports Capital’s £158m loan before they were granted an extension.
If Auclair’s information true, this would be yet another legal wrangle dogging 777 Partners who made headlines last week when their budget Australian airline, Bonza, went into voluntary administration and they were sued in a New York court for allegedly “double-pledging” around $350m to two London-based companies.
Their bid to buy out Farhad Moshiri’s stake in Everton has dragged on for almost eight months and appears no closer to being given the green light despite the firm pumping over £200m into the Club via loans, albeit via funds that critics claim were simply borrowed from elsewhere.
777 have also faced opposition from fans for their ownership of Vasco da Gama in Brazil and Hertha Berlin in Germany.