OFFICIAL - Bolton up for sale for £25 million

BOLTON Wanderers are up for sale at £25million.

A marketing email has been sent out to more than 30 interested parties on behalf of club administrators David Rubin and Partners by valuers Hilco Global.
But anyone who wants to buy the League One club will have to meet a set of criteria laid down in the document.

The next owner of Wanderers will need to provide proof of funds worth £25m plus put in another £25,000 to see the ‘data room’ – an amount only refundable if the bid proves successful.

Any bidder will also have to provide proof to the administrators that they have passed the EFL's owners and directors’ test and had their business plan ratified.

The top-line fee takes into account that interested parties also want to buy the Bolton Whites Hotel, which is currently in the hands of a different administrator.
Potential purchasers must also sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement for the duration of the sale process.

Joint administrator Paul Appleton said: "There has been substantial interest from the moment of our appointment on May 13. Over 30 parties have approached us and we will now begin the process of selecting those best positioned to make a serious offer for the club.

"Speed is of the essence in this process and we are advising all those with a serious interest to provide information concurrently to the EFL in respect of their Owners' and Directors' Test in order to satisfy those demands.

"Hilco have an outstanding reputation in this market and I am confident that we will soon have whittled down the list of potential buyers in order to find the best purchaser for the club and restore the standing of Bolton Wanderers."

Forensic accountants have spent the last week providing a detailed analysis of Wanderers finances, which should make the process of buying the club more streamlined.

Although there has been plenty of interest in buying Bolton the formal bidding process is only expected to begin now that the document has been sent out.

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For what it is worth Anderson was reported to be seeking £25m (all bills paid) for the club.

He asked a sum of money (reportedly £500k???) to see the books, the Administrators are asking £25k.

Twitter opinion crucified him for what he was apparently asking both in terms of price (what he needed to pay off all the creditors and make a small profit for himself) and issuing a charge to see the books so as to put off time wasters.

The official Administrator seems to be asking the same as Anderson was, in order to pay off all the creditors and make a small profit for themselves (their Administration fees), as well as issuing a charge to see the books so as to put off time wasters.


Just saying like.


I am being a bit flippant though actually.

There will be unsecured creditors who will only be receiving a minimum of 25p in the £, so no a like for like comparison but what it does show that if the Administrators have set an amount of £25m in order to exit Admin (which includes Hotel and presumably car parks, land, training ground, etc), with all creditors settled, then it doesn't suggest that Anderson has actually raped and pillaged the club anything like the amount what some people hoped/believed.

No doubt we will find out more in due course.

Bassini will be getting his slippers on as we speak!!

Statement On Behalf Of The Joint Administrators For Bolton Wanderers

Paul Appleton, the Joint Administrator for Bolton Wanderers, has confirmed the club is now being actively marketed for sale and has set out the parameters for all interested parties. 

Hilco Global have been employed as agents of the Administration and will contact all parties who have so far expressed an interest in buying the club. However, there are several stipulations which have to be met before any access to financial information pertaining to the sale can be disclosed.

These include a non-refundable deposit of £25,000, which will have to be paid purely to access the data room.  

Also, proof of funds amounting to not less than £25million, which will take into account those parties also interested in acquiring Whites Hotel.

Potential purchasers must also sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement for the duration of the sale process.

Mr Appleton said: "There has been substantial interest from the moment of our appointment on May 13. Over 30 parties have approached us and we will now begin the process of selecting those best positioned to make a serious offer for the club.

"Speed is of the essence in this process and we are advising all those with a serious interest to provide information concurrently to the EFL in respect of their Owners' and Directors' Test in order to satisfy those demands.

"Hilco have an outstanding reputation in this market and I am confident that we will soon have whittled down the list of potential buyers in order to find the best purchaser for the club and restore the standing of Bolton Wanderers."

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I constantly can't fathom it.....25 million which is pocket change for many people or corporations. Why o why has it got this far...….

25 million seems like a hell of a lot to me.

And that's just the kicker. A club with no fan base in league one and starting on -12 minimum.

This interest will dwindle.

25 million is pocket money to the Chinese group who are interested, let's hope they stick a bid in.

Hipster_Nebula wrote:25 million seems like a hell of a lot to me.

And that's just the kicker. A club with no fan base in league one and starting on -12 minimum.

This interest will dwindle.

Never work for BWFC  Sales department please.

Norpig wrote:25 million is pocket money to the Chinese group who are interested, let's hope they stick a bid in.

That interest is fictional.

You'll find the people who actually end up in the frame will be local no names.

How is it fictional when they were pictured being shown round the ground and the ex Bolton sports science fella who's name i can't remember said it was true and is involved?

Norpig wrote:How is it fictional when they were pictured being shown round the ground and the ex Bolton sports science fella who's name i can't remember said it was true and is involved?

Photoshop and fake news. Keep up Norpig!

Norpig wrote:How is it fictional when they were pictured being shown round the ground

As I've said, when I was a kid I once pitched up at Southampton's old Dell ground, and they were more than happy to give me and my Dad a tour of the stadium. And I met Kevin Keegan.

I'm sure Bolton offer a similar tour. But you get to meet Andy Taylor.

How much did Andy Carroll go for???
£25mil for a club like us is great value

Deco91 wrote:How much did Andy Carroll go for???
£25mil for a club like us is great value

Great value? It's hardly 4 Twirls for a quid is it.

Isn't it a lottery rollover this week? When i win i plan to buy the club and go in and out of Nats box as many times as i like.

Norpig wrote:Isn't it a lottery rollover this week? When i win i plan to buy the club and go in and out of Nats box as many times as i like.

Too late, my box is now at Victory Park.

I would like to see hoe the £25m is made up. Surely it's not going to pay off the secured creditors as well as funding the next two years! Or, is it simply a minimum..... Offers over?

Deco91 wrote:How much did Andy Carroll go for???
£25mil for a club like us is great value

3 years into his ownership Ken was unable to organise the business competently enough to be able to pay the tea lady, cleaner and office junior their wages.

That suggests to me that either the club isn't worth £25 million or Ken was a shit owner before he lost control of the club to the administrators

When a football teams fails to perform it loses its supporters. Bolton have been awful for a long long time, and no one goes anymore.
The talk of running a business badly, it cant go very far when theres no coin coming in. Id say the connection between poor performances and low attendances is the primary factor in everything.
It is always important to add irony onto anything said. One such irony is how clubs like Leeds Utd who have larger crowds struggle to get promoted. But they may have an owner who is milking it. ( I dont know much about them ).