Premier League owners to match £70m Nottingham Forest move – Stefan Borson
Premier League owners will follow in the footsteps of Nottingham Forest chief Evangelos Marinakis in converting their shareholder loans into equity.
That is the view of finance expert Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider some top-flight clubs could have made other arrangements to ensure they don’t pay interest on their loans following the changes to the associated party transaction (APT) rules.
A Companies House submission on 13 January, backdated to 10 January, revealed Marinakis has converted £72million worth of loans into 7.2 billion shares.
The Greek businessman has made a series of moves to convert debt into equity since securing his takeover at the City Ground in 2017.
The latest manoeuvre comes after it was confirmed any shareholder loans still in effect after 11 January must be submitted as an APT and undergo a fair market value assessment following the Premier League’s recent legal battle with Manchester City.
Any money now loaned to a club by their owners will need to reflect fair market value and see interest rates charged in line with commercial loans.
Nottingham Forest chief is looking to wipe out shareholder loans
Borson revealed Marinakis will have been looking to wipe out his shareholder loans after converting the £72million into equity.
He told Football Insider: “The number of shares in itself are completely meaningless, especially in a situation where he owns 100 per cent of it.
“But I think you are going to see a lot of shareholder debt come off, even if it has not yet been confirmed.
“The deadline was 11 January, so most clubs will have converted any outstanding shareholder debt into equity or made another arrangement such that they don’t need to pay interest on it under the new rules.
“I am sure this is just part of it.
“The other reason that people put money in this sort of way is for working capital, so the two reasons why you will see these share issues is for general spending of the club and wiping out shareholder loans in the aftermath of the APT changes that were made.
“You will see them across the Premier League.”
In other news, Nottingham Forest are ‘edging towards’ new deal with Ola Aina.
For more Nottingham Forest and exclusive news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.