I was out of mobile phone range for most of yesterday and returned to read more histrionics. On Tuesday I wrote: “Whatever ‘good news’ Duff and Phelps come out with later”, knowing full well (you all knew too) that news of Bill Miller’s departure would soon be countered by a fantastic (literally) piece of optimism from Rangers administrators. They didn’t disappoint.
Today’s Guardian tells us that one bidder has “proved to Duff and Phelps they have a means of securing current owner Craig Whyte’s shares.”
Administrator, David Whitehouse, explains: “One of the bids is for a stand-alone CVA and there are a number of hurdles which need to be overcome. Our view is that it is challenging, but it is not impossible. The purchaser who is talking to us about a stand-alone CVA has demonstrated to us that they have got a mechanism where Craig Whyte’s shares are not an issue.”
Ah, the illusive mechanism! So Craig Whyte is irrelevant again.
We are three months into the process, Craig Whyte is no more irrelevant today than he was on 14 February, he remains the Only Show in Town. Once he stops being the main event, HMRC take top billing. After them, the players will have their 15 minutes of ‘action’. Then you will hear more of the story. If there is anything left after all this, the SPL and SFA will have their say.
Prior to appointing Bill Miller preferred bidder Duff and Phelps explained why a stand-along CVA was no longer possible. No amount of creative thinking will change this fact. The season ends on Sunday, Rangers last chance to pull a deal together passed on Monday, when Duff and Phelps were unable to present a proposal to the SPL.
Even IF a phoenix is assembled for next season, or the season after that, it will be a humbled shell of what was once Rangers.
Rangers Football Club is disintegrating and will do so at an increasing rate in the weeks ahead. Again, cease and desist with the adolescent hysteria. Chill. Go for a walk in the rain and spare a thought for those football fans with genuine worries.
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Ye Ha
The statement says nothing.
Which might be a good thing.
Declan…..Declan….come oot come oot wherever ye ur…the game’s a bogie
“Lassie, the huns are stuck in a hole … and they keep digging.”
“OK, you’re right. Let’s just leave them there.”
Another top ten
top ten?
Me top 10 yeahhhhh
No ! Another top five
Thought I would re-post and P67 posted a new article … just in case.
Loath to mention this as the “tip” was brought down at the first fence 2 races ago – it subsequently ran 2nd at 20s and tonight at 8.45 runs at Kelso. The rain in Kelso is helping it’s cause. Hawthorne Bay is the horse in question. It will stay and is expected as an e.w. shot – forecast around 10s.
“Feeling” is that the fav only needs to stand up to win, but doesn’t particularly like the soft going.
Good luck if you take part.
Hysteria is certainly the key word in the coming days.
A shell most definitely, humble? Forget it.
More of a FUBAR than a phoenix, as ole TBB might put it..
What’s your thoughts on the Celtic statement Paul67?
Still toast!
Tick tock
Okay so they’re getting a CVA then. That’s it done and dusted eh?
Okay so the following will need to happen then:
One of the bidders puts up the cash for a CVA Not going to happen without…the shares.
The shares are owned by Craigy boy. Now the Shares are worth the proverbial hill o’ beans, but he might want paid something for his…floating charge.
Effectively this requires the CVA to be inflated by whatever price Craigy boy wants to do walking away, and bear in mind (absent a legal move to reduce/remove the value of his floating charge) he gets paid first and in full….
Expect HMRC to go batshit mental crazy if a deal is put on the table which sees CW waltz off into the sunset with £5million in his sky rocket, leaving them arguing the toss with the rest of the schmuck unsecured creditors for the thruppence ha’penny residue of the CVA pot. They have far more than 25% of the total debt and can block a CVA. They WILL under most circumstances, unless they get paid in full for back taxes on the PAYE/NIC/VAT, in which case they might look the other way re: penalties, maybe even interest. My understanding is there won’t be enough in the CVA to cover the £15million from WTC/PAYE/NIC/VAT, not including interest and penalties. Ergo, nae deal.
Even if Hector deals, which is unlikely, this still leaves the problem of ticketus, who will probably oppose their treatment as a creditor, and try to claim monies from season book sales after a CVA has been agreed. I’ve not even mentioned BTC, legacy issues with penalties for dual contracts, or the transfer embargo. Unless somebody has ALOT of cash to get rid of Hector (even before BTC result), is willing to deal with Ticketus, and pay Craigy boy the same as he would get in a straightforward assets sale, the CVA route just doesn’t make sense.
Therefore…it’s sale of assets into a newco. Craigy boy has a floating charge over the assets. The extent of assets covered by his floating charge is unknown but in any event, he still gets paid in full before anybody else. This is why he’s the only show in town. His Floating Charge is probably reduceable on the basis of what we know of how he bought the club. However, he’s a pig in a poke financially. If you want to remove his floating charge, you’ve got to pursue him in court, spending £££s and time, win, and then get your fees back. Nae chance. Trying to pursue CW in court to remove his floating charge is tilting at windmills. From his point of view, he knows his charge, if determined by a court, is probably worthless. However, he knows that a new buyer of the assets just wants to buy the assets, and quickly. He will price himself at just below the cost of pursuing him in court for years and years and get paid to walk away. He will even throw in his shares in the oldco if you want, in the 1,000,000/1 chance the oldco is ever merged with newco. A sensibly advised purchaser will be told to hold his nose and pay CW to walk away.
This still leaves HMRC, who can interdict any sale of assets they think is less than they would get after a successful winding up petition, and Tikcetus, to potentially interdict the sale. They have got MILES to go before a newco is ready to be presented as a fait accompli, particularly if this would involve having the structure in place before Sunday’s game, a scenario which has been war gamed on here before (Auldheid maybe?).
So, everybody, RELAX, they’re still dying.
I think ;-)
Apologies if this was posted earlier. From Alex Thomson’s blog – keeping it real…
Well – we should all know more than enough to be wary – very wary – of Duff and Phelps the administrators of Rangers FC being optimistic. It’s their pathology. In D&P world the cup’s not so such half full as flowing into a series of overflow-vats.
Some reality here. Check what Mr Whitehouse of D&P is saying in the “small print”.
Even he suggests at least one of the four “bids” is a rank outsider. He admits no credible, detailed rescue package is yet really on the table at all. A lot of guff about hope, credibility – nothing about cash.
He admits all talk thus far from all “bidders” has set the money going into the rescue package at levels nowhere near enough to satisfy the key creditors. They’re saying “don’t be daft” at what’s been suggested thus far.
Alarmingly D&P seem to think that if a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) is put in place as a way of rescuing Rangers by agreeing a deal with major creditors, then Rangers can play football in Europe somehow. I suggest they call UEFA urgently where I’ve talked in detail. UEFA insists a CVA is a change in legal status and means a three year ban – just like setting up a Newco: “It’s a loophole. We recognise it as a loophole and we wish to close it,” their spokesman told me late last week.
It’s critical to any proposed income flow at Ibrox and this morning the administrators are stressing this. Yes – they need to call UEFA.
And yes – setting up any kind of CVA rescue will take weeks – I’m reliably informed around six weeks.
No amount of talking up the bids in terms of a couple being from people who will be popular among fans is going to untie this – nor will it put more money on the table and a lot more needs to be on it and fast.
Ticketus – the London ticket company now one of the main creditors of Rangers and major shareholder Craig Whyte, have just told me they are not part of any current bid for Rangers.
“We’re out of all that – and happy to sit on the sidelines,” said their spokesman.
They’ve other fish in the fryer. Later today expect them to file a legal claim for £27m against Mr Whyte for season tickets he “bought” from them.
They insist the money was for tickets only, not for buying the club as has been reported elsewhere.
They expect a “long and protracted” legal case. But what if Mr Whyte should lose and does not have money like this?
“Well we know he has a large house in the Highlands of Scotland and another in the south of France. We know he has a web of financial arrangements based in the British Virgin Islands tax haven and we’re very patient about all this,” said the PR company who represent Ticketus.
Mr Whyte himself has indicated what the world and his dog already know well, that he cannot and will not realise anything like the £30m he was aiming to get by selling up his stake, just a few weeks ago.
And football? The club cannot sell season tickets at all in the current complete confusion. The squad have no clear idea what money they’ll get after next month when a lot of player contracts run out. Football’s a very short career, so facing a Euro-ban and wages/contractual confusion, many will hightail it from Ibrox to other clubs leaving potentially a squad of youths, never-will-bes and have-beens. And a manager as yet unable to buy, because of a year ban on buying because the club brought the game into disrepute over financial mismanagement.
What seems astonishing too is another D&P admission – that it’s basically being left to manager Ally McCoist to brief the players on this mess day by day. These guys need to hear from financial rather than football brains one would have thought.
Did anyone ever get to the bottom of the deal with the players? Even last night Ratbhoy was talking about the “wage cut”. Yet there was talk of deferral instead and all the money not paid being owed to the players come 1 June. And the tax and NI on the deferred wages is already due.
Also, what’s the deadline for D&P to pay us the ticket money from the last ever derby? Must be about now sometime …
Folks,
Can you confirm to whom any revenue goes for Scottish Cup and League Cup games if played at Celtic Park?
Season book renewals for me are 100% as will always want to watch Celtic in Paradise but considering cancelling automatic cup games and all away games if the league and association refuse to show a pair.
Are we nearly there yet?
cavansam, 10:58, Saint Stivs 9.00
Charlie played another game after the Rangers match – a Finn Harps friendly a few days later. 4-0 Celtic, he scored as well though I can’t remember his goal especially
http://www.thecelticwiki.com/page/1983-05-18%3A+Finn+Harps+0-4+Celtic
One part of the club’s statement makes me feel a little uneasy.
“As the Club prepares for the final league match of this season, when the SPL trophy will be presented to Celtic after Sunday’s game against Hearts, Chief Executive Peter Lawwell also thanked the Celtic supporters for their unwavering backing of the team throughout the campaign, which has helped to deliver the title back to its rightful place.”
Celtic Park is not the rightful place of the League title. I grew up reading such crap in the DR and other papers only it was, “Rangers will return to their rightful place at the top of Scottish football”. No club has a rightful place at the top – it must be earned each and every season by the quality of football you play on the pitch – a meritocracy. That’s what we’ve been banging on about in CQN since it’s inception. Let’s not start adopting Hun attitudes even before their demise.
Shagadelic!
A fabulous mess which will get even more messy..
They deserve a long ,slow and very painful death..
Lovely warm [ mid 80s ] day -way down south.
Is today the day nonpayers fc have to pay us for tickets to watch the last hunskelping.
HAIL HAIL
Cheers O.G. didn’t know that (or 29 years in between getting the better of me).
Awe_Naw – I was going to do exactly that :) I am clearly predictable.
My personal opinion would have been, as you know, to keep your gob shut until you have something to say. When nothing has happened and you make a statement, you get a nothing statement….however….as I said with you yesterday, I understand what you are saying.
Communication is rarely a bad thing and they did communicate.
I suppose they are in a no win situation. Say nothing and guys like you are not happy. Say something (even if it is about nothing) and guys like me are not happy.
I wouldn’t like to be in charge of their PR strategy let me tell you.
“Again, cease and desist with the adolescent hysteria”
Really, 140 years of hatred and bigotry goin down the plughole and we’re not to be too excited?! If my grandfather was still with us he’d be one of those ‘adolescents’ at heart again, of that I have no doubt, and he wouldn’t be the only one.
The message here seems to be:
1. Rangers, as we know them, ARE dying.
2. Keep the celebrations muted.
Well f%*$ that! Get the party started.
HH
gerryguk7 – good post
Fans of RFCIA have real worries. Not sure I’d classify them as football fans though…!
Paul67 – D&P are so far off plan now they will be willing to accept anything to get the hell out of dodge.
if we can see that so can the vultures who are circling…..
Good times
Hi, Paul67,
What’s the story with Magcloud? I bought the last few issues for £5. Today I see we are back to US$ plus the whack from the bank for exchange conversion from sterling to dollars.
Is this being fixed since this could be a hot issue and one I certainly would prefer in hard copy format.
Why not have a few thousand printed locally and sell at CP on Sunday. The programme sellers could do this. No?
TheOriginalSadiesBhoy on 10 May, 2012 at 11:15 said:
Maybe what the statement means is that the huns only had the league title last season because they didn’t pay their bills, ie they cheated, so the title wasn’t rightfully theirs.
I hope duffer and duffest’s employers have got it under the pillow; I hope they have it stashed up in the loft; I hope it’s falling off the shelves in the pantry; I hope they have it in abundance; I hope they stocked up for the winter; I hope they have heaps and heaps of it, mountains of it in fact because when it comes to the crunch, and HMRC can crunch like the best of them… you just can’t ever, ever, ever, ever even, have enough, or too much, Professional Indemnity Insurance.
HMRC haven’t even got the ralgex out of the bag yet.
cavansam, 11:18
And why would you? I only remember it because it meant that I managed to see his last goal for Celtic in that free-scoring season
The original sadies bhoy @ 11:15 – that’s a very good point, I hadn’t thought that when I read it, albeit i’m sure no disrespect was meant to any other clubs.
Scottish Football is now suffering from the consequences of one club assuming their prominence over all others is a given right, we have always earned our prominence, and I’m sure we will continue to do so.
Smashing Milk Bottles
You would think the fact its raining over in the West of Scotland that you, in your line of business, would be busy today – busy alright, busy posting on CQN!! :)
Hail Hail
Roccobhoy
obonfanti1888, I think Peter Lawwell’s statement pretty much says ‘Chill. Go take a walk in the rain and calm down’ or words to that effect.
I am sceptical that it is possible to calm the compulsively hysterical. We’ll see.
RogueLeader, indeed.
jimmci, this issue is Magcloud only, sorry.
Off out, laters…