(Reuters) – The sale of struggling Premier League club Everton to 777 Partners has stalled as the U.S. investment fund is yet to provide audited financial statements to a British regulator, the New York Times said on Wednesday.
Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) delivered its request to 777 Partners this month, and if the company does not provide the required financials or an acceptable explanation, the takeover could fall apart, the NYT said, citing people familiar with the matter.
A source familiar with the matter, however, told Reuters that the deal is ongoing and has not stalled.
“We have submitted all relevant documentation to the FCA in line with their requests, and indicative timings,” a spokesperson for 777 Partners said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
The FCA declined to comment.
Last month, Everton was sold to 777 Partners in a deal reported to be worth more than 550 million pounds ($669.79 million.
777 Partners had signed an agreement with British-Iranian billionaire Farhad Moshiri to acquire his 94.1% stake in the club.
Everton’s most recent figures showed a fifth straight year of losses – 44.7 million pounds for the 2021-22 season – with their total loss over that period amounting to more than 430 million pounds.
The firm 777 Partners has a number of clubs in its portfolio, including Italian side Genoa and Belgian team Standard Liege, while they also have stakes in LaLiga club Sevilla and Australian A-League side Melbourne Victory.
($1 = 0.8214 pounds)
(Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal, Chandni Shah and Gursimran Kaur in Bengaluru; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Anil D’Silva and Shinjini Ganguli)
