There is uncertainty about all three bids for Rangers currently being considered by the club's administrators, Duff & Phelps.
Each is shaped by the circumstances and the ambitions of the men behind the offers, and they will be evaluated in terms of their worth to Rangers' creditors. The administrators have a statutory obligation to achieve the best outcome for the holders of the club's debt, but the three bids also represent different possible outcomes for the Ibrox side.
Duff & Phelps are scrutinising the offers, from Paul Murray's Blue Knights consortium, Bill Ng's group of Singapore investors, and Bill Murray, a US tycoon, ahead of naming a preferred bidder this week. Negotiations will then begin with the dominant creditors – led by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs – to determine if a Company Voluntary Arrangement, involving a compromise on Rangers' debts, is achievable.
Yet, the outcome will also be influenced by Craig Whyte, who still owns the majority shareholding, so must agree to any sale. As a secured creditor, despite Duff & Phelps' belief that he is not, Whyte must also sign off on any CVA offer to unsecured creditors. Here, though, is an analysis of the three bids, as they stand.
The Blue Knights
There is already an emotional attachment to this bid, since Rangers fans know many of the figures who have revealed their involvement. The three main supporters groups have also backed Murray's consortium. As a former director, he has direct knowledge of the business of Scottish football and also the running of the club. Murray and his fellow Knights are all Rangers supporters, with their aim being to stabilise the club and share the financial burden. Yet there are issues with funding.
Money has been raised for their bid, and it benefits from the deal Murray struck with Ticketus that removes them from the creditors' pot. The firm will also provide Rangers with a short-term £10m loan capacity while a share issue is held. It is unclear what security has been offered on this facility, or who might underwrite the share issue – Dave King, perhaps – but there is no vast source of wealth behind the bid. With Ticketus also to be repaid some of their original loan to Whyte, thought to be £10m but with a more generous repayment rate (nothing for two years then only when Rangers are in Europe), the club's revenue streams will be diminished by this liability.
Fans groups have been assured that they will be granted representation on the board, although it remains to be clarified if this involves voting rights. Supporters certainly favour a membership scheme which will allow them a say in the club's governance. It could also help to monetise the wider Rangers fan base. But if the share issue was not a success, the club would be hampered. Ultimately, the Knights are seeking the long-term stability of the club.
Bill Miller
A 65-year-old investor whose main business is a vehicle towing company, Miller may have made the highest bid for the club. That is balanced against Ticketus being in the creditors' pot, although it is conceivable that the finance firm would switch their allegiance to the preferred bidder, offering them the same deal as their agreement with the Blue Knights. Miller started on the wrong footing, having been associated with Club 9 Sports, the investment fund that failed in bids to buy Sheffield Wednesday and Tranmere Rovers. As they investigated buying Rangers, it emerged that their preference was to liquidate the club.
Since Club 9 stepped back, leaving Miller to act on his own, he has embarked upon a public relations strategy, speaking to Ally McCoist by phone and stressing in various interviews that he will seek a CVA. Miller has a chequered business career, but then that is typical of investors. Miller's own wealth is substantial and he has a track record of investing in sport, although not all of them have been successful.
There are a number of Rangers supporters clubs in America, while many US investors consider the broadcast potential of British football to still not be fully realised. Yet Scottish football cannot tap into the market in the same way as the Barclays Premier League, even if Rangers have global recognition. Miller also suffers from a perceived connection with Whyte or Andrew Ellis, and supporters will wonder what his ultimate exit strategy is. Miller could supply greater funding in the early stages than the Blue Knights, but long-term there would be a question mark about his commitment.
Bill Ng
The Singapore group face the same questions as Miller: what is the motive and what is the end game? Ng also has significant personal wealth, and owns Hougang United, a Singapore club. He has tried to address any wariness among fans by claiming to have followed the club since watching Rangers win the European Cup-winners' Cup in 1972, but this seems fanciful. Like Miller, his bid also suffers from Ticketus being in the creditors' pot, but also like Miller, and unlike the Knights, he can afford to fund short-term investment in the team.
Ng is said to be passionate about football, and the sport is deeply popular in south-east Asia. He is also said to be hands-on when it comes to running his club, although he has insisted that the board of Rangers would be made up of British businessmen with an allegiance to the club.
The strongest element of Ng's bid is his knowledge of the football market in south-east Asia, where Barclays Premier League teams regularly tour during the summer. If Rangers could be established as the club with the strongest links to the area, a new revenue stream would be generated, but this would be self-defeating if he insisted on players from the region moving to Ibrox as part of his strategy. Like Miller, he is relatively unknown, which makes supporters wary, but he also has more funds readily to hand than the Blue Knights.
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