Latest news with #AlanSavage
Press and Journal
19-05-2025
- Business
- Press and Journal
Caley Thistle creditors' meeting on hold - but Alan Savage 99% confident of takeover bid success
Caley Thistle's crunch Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) meeting this week has been postponed until June 5 – but owner-in-waiting Alan Savage remains 99% sure that's the date the Highlanders will put administration behind them. The CVA meeting was due for this Thursday, with former chairman Alan Savage's £800,000 bid on the table for the League One club as they seek to get out of administration. Joint administrators had previously set out the conditions of the offer from Savage and had indicated the meeting of creditors to approve the CVA would be scheduled for May 22. The conditions were: In a statement, administrators BDO have this afternoon Monday said: 'Huge progress had been made in respect of the conditions. 'The joint administrators are delighted with the responses and confident in proposing a CVA that can be approved. 'It is vital that the joint administrators can present a clear proposal to creditors. 'In particular, the purchase of the lease in respect of the land surrounding the stadium, which involves a splitting of the lease, requires a legal agreement involving the club, current leaseholders and Highland Council as head landlord. 'All parties are fully engaged and the joint administrators thank Highland Council for their swift and pragmatic approach to this. 'As a result, and to ensure a proposal is presented to the creditors without unfulfilled conditions, the CVA meeting will now be held on June 5. 'The relevant documents have been sent to creditors today (Monday, May 19). 'The joint administrators would stress that they are confident that a successful outcome is achievable.' In addition, a spokesperson at BDO, said: 'We would also like take this opportunity to thank the shareholders that have returned their forms agreeing to cede. 'The response has been remarkable and often accompanied with messages of support for Mr Savage and the club. 'We would encourage every shareholder that has not responded to do so and assist in the final push to exit administration.' Last week, Savage confirmed to the Press and Journal, 95% of those shareholders asked to cede their shares had done so. This afternoon, Savage told the P&J he believes the 31-year-old club – Scottish Cup winners a decade ago this month – are still closing on their administration exit. He said: 'All going to plan, we're coming out of administrator on June 5. 'That's when – subject to what the press release has stated today – I will expected to announce a way forward. It should be straight forward. 'The SPFL (Scottish Professional Football League) and the Scottish FA have said that's okay and that looks like the way we're going. 'As far as I'm concerned, it's full steam ahead. 'Even today, we're looking at new ideas and (a new) Nessie (mascot) suit has been ordered! 'I'm 99% confident we won't have any problems.'
STV News
19-05-2025
- Business
- STV News
Inverness administrators ‘confident that a successful outcome is achievable'
A meeting to determine the fate of Inverness has been postponed by two weeks but administrators are confident of a positive outcome. Creditors will now vote on a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) on June 5 amid a delay to ensure conditions are fulfilled. Former Caley Thistle chairman Alan Savage was named as the preferred bidder last month after his funding kept the club going this season and helped them avoid relegation to William Hill League Two. The bid was subject to 100 per cent of the voting shares being transferred to his purchasing vehicle, all loan creditors being written off and an agreement to purchase land around the stadium. A statement from administrators BDO read: 'Huge progress had been made in respect of the conditions. The joint administrators are delighted with the responses and confident in proposing a CVA that can be approved. 'It is vital that the joint administrators can present a clear proposal to creditors. 'In particular, the purchase of the lease in respect of the land surrounding the stadium, which involves a splitting of the lease, requires a legal agreement involving the club, current leaseholders and Highland Council as head Landlord. All parties are fully engaged and the joint administrators thank Highland Council for their swift and pragmatic approach to this. 'As a result, and to ensure a proposal is presented to the creditors without unfulfilled conditions, the CVA meeting will now be held on 5 June. The relevant documents have been sent to creditors. 'The joint administrators would stress that they are confident that a successful outcome is achievable.' A spokesperson for BDO added: 'We would also like take this opportunity to thank the shareholders that have returned their forms agreeing to cede. 'The response has been remarkable and often accompanied with messages of support for Savage and the club. 'We would encourage every shareholder that has not responded to do so and assist in the final push to exit administration.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Press and Journal
09-05-2025
- Business
- Press and Journal
Caley Thistle: Administrators reveal takeover update and next steps to 'rescue' club
Caley Thistle joint administrators revealed positive steps have taken place in regards to the bid to 'rescue' the club. BDO said the losses, and any further between now and the end of June, will be covered by Alan Savage. BDO held discussions with ex-club chairman Ross Morrison, who has agreed to write off a loan worth £1.5 million in order for the sale of the club to progress. It also confirmed loans to former directors totalling around £3.5m will be written off if a deal to sell the club is agreed. Savage tabled an £800,000 offer to buy 100% of shares of the administration-hit League One club in March. BDO said it received a total of 32 interested parties from various countries but saw a majority withdraw interest during due diligence. Issues for Caley Thistle suitors included securing the land around the stadium and the ability to gain a majority shareholding. However, following discussions with key shareholders and the owners of the land around the stadium, the administrators were able to offer 'more assurance'. BDO said: 'Several parties re-engaged in the process and we accordingly provided them with more time to consider offers. 'We set a further deadline of 5pm Monday 7 April 2025 for best and final offers. 'This process resulted in three offers for the club, however, we considered only one of these offers to be valid and workable.' On the field, Caley Thistle avoided relegation in style, finishing the season with back-to-back wins over Arbroath and Montrose. Off the pitch, the administrator's report revealed the club had a turnover of £552,000 between October 22 and April 21. Online ticket sales contributed to £63,700 while matchday ticket sales added a further £27,800. Player trading raised the club more than £92,000. During the six-month period, the club received a £20,000 transfer fee from English club Accrington Stanley. However, the cost of its sales and trading expenses, which included £340,000 in player's wages, added to £839,660 – leaving the club with a trading loss of £288,000. Savage's £800,000 offer is subject to three key conditions; the former directors writing off loans of around £3.5m, the lease of the land around the stadium can be purchased by the club and 100% of the voting shares being transferred to him. The joint administrators said: 'This process in ongoing and we are pleased to advise a large percentage of forms have been returned. A further significant percentage are in process. 'These developments will allow us to issue proposals to the unsecured creditors for a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) exit from administration.' Should an exit from administration not be possible then administrators say it would likely end in Caley Thistle's liquidation. BDO confirmed seven employees of the club have been made formally redundant following the joint administrator's appointment. One employee has also resigned during the period. BDO said: 'The outcome for preferential creditors is dependent on the ongoing business sale process, but we anticipate they will be paid in full as part of the CVA process.' Meanwhile, HMRC have have submitted a claim totalling £114,699 and it is expected to rise to around £180,000. BDO said: 'It is uncertain whether funds will be available for unsecured creditors after covering administration costs. 'The value of the company's net property is also uncertain. The schedule of creditors details unsecured creditors' claims totalling £1,976,933. 'To date, the joint administrators have received claims of £422,291.' Caley Thistle's assets include the leasehold interest in Caledonian Stadium and property improvements, which have seen valuations obtained. However, the values have not been disclosed to 'avoid prejudicing the sales process'. The stadium is held on a long ground lease with Highland Council, expiring in 2094. The joint administrators also revealed they intend to cap their fee at £325,000 for the administration if a deal to rescue the club is reached. They say this would represent a discount of around 40-50% on their estimated total time costs.
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
ICT still at risk of demotion, warn administrators
Inverness Caledonian Thistle's joint administrators warn the club remains at risk of being demoted - despite Saturday's crucial win over Arbroath. BDO was appointed in October to oversee ICT's finances and also find a new owner after the club ran up large debts. Inverness' 3-0 victory ensured the League 1 club avoided a potential end-of-season relegation battle. But BDO said shareholders now needed to agree to terms set out by Alan Savage, the preferred bidder to buy the club, to prevent the deal from falling through. Mr Savage's conditions include that 100% of voting shares transfer to him. He has also asked that all loan creditors be written off, and that an agreement is reached on ownership of land around the stadium. Are Inverness Caley Thistle on the rise after a fall? Offer to take Dumbarton out of administration withdrawn BDO said a meeting on 22 May could lead to ICT exiting administration. A spokesperson said: "However, these conditions need to be in place prior to the meeting and we would encourage all shareholders in particular to complete and return their stock transfer forms as soon as possible. "We would remind any shareholder who may be minded not to agree to the proposal that this may result in the offer being withdrawn, the assets sold to another entity and the club - should it survive - being demoted outside of the league structure." The spokesperson added that if this happened all shares could eventually end up being "redundant". More stories from the Highlands and Islands News from the Highlands and Islands on BBC Sounds BDO congratulated the team on Saturday's win and said it was something everyone at the club should be proud of. Inverness had been facing the threat of relegation after it was deducted 15 points by the league as punishment for its financial situation. But the team has taken club from the bottom of the league to seventh place. Saturday's away game against Montrose will be ICT's last game of this season. BDO's warning has come as a proposal to take Inverness' League 1 rivals Dumbarton out of administration and pay their creditors in full has collapsed. On 15 April, administrators Quantuma announced a deal with Oxford-based Gareth Phillips that would wipe out the club's debt, with working capital made available for next season. Now it has said that Mr Phillips had withdrawn his offer due to ill-health. Quantuma said "other credible parties" remained interested in taking over the club. ICTFC
BBC News
28-04-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Inverness Caley Thistle still at risk of demotion, warn BDO
Inverness Caledonian Thistle's joint administrators warn the club remains at risk of being demoted - despite Saturday's crucial win over was appointed in October to oversee ICT's finances and also find a new owner after the club ran up large 3-0 victory ensured the League 1 club avoided a potential end-of-season relegation BDO said shareholders now needed to agree to terms set out by Alan Savage, the preferred bidder to buy the club, to prevent the deal from falling through. Mr Savage's conditions include that 100% of voting shares transfer to has also asked that all loan creditors be written off, and that an agreement is reached on ownership of land around the stadium. BDO said a meeting on 22 May could lead to ICT exiting administration.A spokesperson said: "However, these conditions need to be in place prior to the meeting and we would encourage all shareholders in particular to complete and return their stock transfer forms as soon as possible."We would remind any shareholder who may be minded not to agree to the proposal that this may result in the offer being withdrawn, the assets sold to another entity and the club - should it survive - being demoted outside of the league structure."The spokesperson added that if this happened all shares could eventually end up being "redundant". BDO congratulated the team on Saturday's win and said it was something everyone at the club should be proud had been facing the threat of relegation after it was deducted 15 points by the league as punishment for its financial the team has taken club from the bottom of the league to seventh away game against Montrose will be ICT's last game of this season. BDO's warning has come as a proposal to take Inverness' League 1 rivals Dumbarton out of administration and pay their creditors in full has 15 April, administrators Quantuma announced a deal with Oxford-based Gareth Phillips that would wipe out the club's debt, with working capital made available for next it ha said that Mr Phillips had withdrawn his offer due to said "other credible parties" remained interested in taking over the club.
