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Cost of trying to manipulate Ashley clear

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By on CQN BLOG & Comments

This morning’s stock market announcement that Rangers International received a £5m emergency loan from our pal Mike Ashley, with terms agreed (pending diligence) on a further £5m available if needed, will see the club through the next week.

£3m of that £5m will go straight back to Ashley, to repay the loans he issued the club last year, leaving £2m, which will cover this week’s wages, with little left over (last year’s average monthly expenses was £2.75m).

The club can sell players this week, but as that is unlikely to generate significant funds, it looks like additional funding will be needed before next month’s wages – and significantly – before the proposed EGM.

In return for what is little more than an additional three week’s money, Ashley gets a floating charge over ALL the club’s assets.  Despite how many headlines portray this story, that includes Ibrox Stadium.

Issuing a floating charge over assets is a normal piece of business for a football club, but this is not a normal football club.  Floating charges are usually issued to banks, not predatory retailers, and they are seldom issued when the club is weeks away from running out of money.

A fixed charge has been granted over Murray Park, Edmiston House, Albion Car Park and, crucially, the club’s trademarks.  In the event of a default, all these assets become the property of Sports Direct.

For reasons which are hard to fathom, Ibrox became some totem not to be tampered with, allowing Ashley to grab hold of enormous assets with relatively little concern.  Should they default, consider this:

You want to sell tickets with ‘your’ crest or badge, pay me.  You want to sell programmes, own a web site, do a shirt deal with someone else in the future, display the crest on the stadium wall, pay me.

The fact that Ibrox is subject to a floating, not fixed, charge, means that in theory the board could grant someone else a fixed charge over that asset, if they act before the floating charge becomes actionable.  However, with Ashley now able to load the board with another two appointments, that possibility is not credible.  If you have the floating charge, and you have the board, you don’t need a fixed charge.

There are other kicks to the nether regions.  The club has given Sports Direct another 26% of Rangers Retail, bringing their total holding to 76%, for the duration of the initial loan.  This is not hugely significant, but it could be in lieu of fees and interest, which are not being charged.

More interestingly for a club completing short-term funding requirements, they have agreed to pass their shirt sponsorship proceeds to Rangers Retail from 2017, until all these borrowings are repaid.  With all the other rights Ashley is likely to assume in the coming months, this seems unnecessary.  He has the board, has inserted the conditions he wants in these loans and has the fixed and floating charges required to do pretty much anything.  Apart from rubbing people’s faces in the faeces, this additional ‘benefit’ appears superfluous.

What’s the takeaway message in all of this?

Despite the press briefings which were slavishly reported as news earlier this month, Ashley is not about to roll over, no matter how ample his frame.  He doesn’t care about anything you care about.  He cannot be bribed, blackmailed or coerced.  He will react badly to people trying to manipulate him.  Very badly.

He has control of the boardroom and Rangers International will need him before he needs it, and before any EGM is held.  This is his new baseline, the next round of ‘assistance’ will tighten his grip on the all-important income streams.

It’s an impossible situation for the fans.  Learn to live with the guy you’ve failed to box into a corner, while he exacts compensation for the trouble he’s been put to, or continue to resent him.

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  3. the long wait is over on

    The Lurkin Tim

     

     

    Does it occur that P67 doesnt actually sit glued to the screen 24/7 and might be otherwise engaged..?

  7. BGX on

    Leftclicktic…….Shaking it Boss…..from Cool hand Luke right?….best thing ive read on here….im still laughing….brilliant mate….

  9. Philbhoy on

    Have we signed anyone yet?

     

     

    Anyone who can play for us this week?

     

     

    Is this the GMS window?

     

     

    Please, no.

  10. ziggydoc1 on

    thelurkintim

     

     

    10:21 on 27 January, 2015

     

    Ziggydoc,

     

     

    why would we watch a Nazi Propaganda film…..;-((

     

     

    H.H.

     

    —————————————————————————————————————————-

     

     

    Because it shows an attempt by the Nazis to rewrite history.

     

    http://www.afilmunfinished.com/film.html

     

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1568923/

     

     

     

    Maybe in years to come some blogger will ask why would we read a Sunday Herald advert by some Celtic propagandists :)

  11. danso_1888 on

    psychopaths, winning captain and co according to that celtic great dalglish one player I very much regret who played for us.

  12. Geordie Munro on

    Philbhoy,

     

     

    Straight into the team for a cup tie?? Are you crazy?

     

     

    And no. Nae new signings yet neebs.

  13. TheLurkinTim on

    Ziggtdoc, really…..;-)))

     

     

    I’m with the…..Maybe in years to come some blogger will ask why would we read a Sunday Herald advert by some Celtic propagandists

     

     

    mmmm……H. H.

  16. Philbhoy on

    Geordie Munro

     

     

    I did not mean straight into the team on Sunday.

     

     

    I meant eligible to play, not necessarily against the unmentionables.

     

     

    Not like GMS, who is not available until his contract ends, whenever that is.

  19. EmeraldBee\o/ still proud to be an internet bampot on

    Guys, a new ‘news’ source has appeared recently on NewsNowCeltic (new to me anyway), tagged as SQUAWKA.

     

     

    Don’t bother opening it – it’s full of lazy, pro-sevco stuff and when I tried to contact them to engage in discussion re. correction of some of their stuff, surprise,surprise my emails just bounced back.

     

     

    Death by ignoring them!

  21. SonsOfErin on

    Rogueleader – the history of course! Ashley has a floating charge over the clubs’ history’, which is worth billions and can survive an apocalypse, as you well know.

  27. traditionalist88 on

    TheLurkinTim

     

    15:22 on

     

    27 January, 2015

     

    Flounce till P67 justifies my fellow card

     

     

    ;-))

     

    ====

     

     

    Could be because you’re called the Lurking Tim yet…here you are;)

     

     

    HH

  29. RogueLeader on

    TheLurkinTim – did you not paste a whole screed from Rangers Media that contained the very bad F word?

  30. SonsOfErin on

    Are we sure ashley now has 4 board members? As the 3m loan is repaid I believe his original 2 members condition no longer stands, so this new condition for 2 members simply replaces it. thats my reading, could be wrong.

  31. Monaghan1900 on

    Police to arrest editor of Dundee Courier:

     

     

    ” A former chairman of Rangers Football Club has been appointed to investigate the rocketing costs of the V&A at Dundee.

     

    Councillors backed the selection of businessman John McClelland to investigate the causes behind the hugely inflated price tag of the project, which it recently emerged would now cost more than £80 million.

     

    Mr McClelland, who was chairman of the now-defunct club between 2002 and 2004, was appointed as members agreed a monumental new funding package for the troubled museum.”

  33. LiviBhoy on

    bhoywithseethrougheyes

     

     

    If it were my daughter I would get her tickets for the lounge at Paradise and give her the taxi fare.

     

     

    Just my thoughts.

     

     

    LB

  34. Burgas Hoops on

    TheLurkinTim

     

     

     

    Really what’s the big deal here?

     

     

    I get a yellow every week from fleaeagle when he see’s my horsey nap !!!!!!

  35. weebobbycollins on

    If I were playing on Sunday and I scored at the Hun end; 1st, I would bless myself, then cup my ears, next the ‘sh’ finger on lips, ending with a middle finger tony donnelly style GIRFUYs.

  36. leftclicktic on

    BGX

     

     

     

    15:08 on 27 January, 2015

     

    Yes sir

     

    The Cool hand Luke

     

    line sprung into my mind as I seen the poor sevco soul:))) approaching .

  38. twists n turns on

    Desperation reaches laughable level on FF. Serious post and reply:

     

     

     

     

    Re: Somers the Liar on ssn there

     

     

    ——————————————————————————–

     

     

     

    Quote:

     

    Originally Posted by whitbyontbear View Post

     

    Can the fat slug be brought up on M****ic charges? What he is doing is against the ethos of the Craft IMHO.

     

     

     

     

    Is this viable…Honest question btw?

  40. BGX on

    Saw on twitter an interview with the Green Brigade…diirects you to Alabinbonban(google)….its good….worth a read…..

  41. jimtim on

    jamesgang

     

     

    14:44 on 27 January, 2015

     

    weeminger

     

    Turkeybhoy

     

     

    Or option

     

     

    ############

     

     

    As I said in a thread last week , that’s how I see it panning out too . A resurgent Rangers , big crowds , European participation . Merchandise sales . Etc . And it wouldn’t cost a fortune to line up a team to take the title up here . Nope a sorry day for the bhoys , he got involved with them .

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