Finance guru: Amanda Staveley has spent £10m on lawyers as new Newcastle legal details emerge
Amanda Staveley spent around £10million on lawyer fees to get the Newcastle United takeover over the line.
So says finance expert Doctor Dan Plumley, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the ongoing legal drama at St James’ Park.
Previous owner Mike Ashley is suing Staveley over an alleged breach of a £10m loan used to complete the £305m takeover in October last year.
As per BBC Sport last Saturday (19 February), official court documents show that she also borrowed £30.5m from a separate lender.
The official cost of the takeover was £305million, and Staveley holds a 10 per cent stake.
Plumley claims that the £10m she borrowed from Ashley will have been to navigate the costly legal minefield that comes with a major purchase.
“That £10m must have been to cover costs related to the acquisition,” the Sheffield Hallam University expert told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“That £30.5m is for the 10 per cent stake and the other one must have been negotiated because they needed some money to get through the takeover.
“It’s an additional charge on top of the stake she’s bought. You’d imagine it will be repaid to Mike Ashley with interest attached.
“It’s administration costs, so lawyer fees and things like that.
“The amount needed to complete a takeover would vary from club to club, so it’s hard to benchmark this against other takeovers.”
Staveley has previously claimed that she used her personal wealth to raise the funds for her 10 per cent stake in Newcastle.
Plumley told this site yesterday (21 February) that he could not understand her motives for apparently not telling the truth.
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