Hicks, Gillett Buy More Time By Refinancing Bank Loans
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Hicks (l), Gillett Will Repay $98.9M Of
Outstanding Loans To Reduce Existing Debt |
EPL club Liverpool co-Owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have "propped up their regime for another year by refinancing for a second time the bank loans with which they bought the club," according to James Ducker of the LONDON TIMES. The owners, as part of an arrangement with RBS and Wachovia, will repay $98.9M (all figures U.S.) of "outstanding loans that will ultimately reduce the existing debt" from $477.9M to $379.0M. About $65.9M is "expected to be repaid this week," with the additional $33M due later this year. RBS and Wachovia are "understood to have demanded the repayment as a condition of agreeing to extend the loan by 12 months, although it was unclear last night how much of the [$98.9M] will be paid to RBS and how much to Wachovia." Meanwhile, Ducker notes Gillett reportedly raised his share of the funds from the impending $543.8M sale of his 80.1% stake in the Canadiens, but there was "no confirmation from Hicks's camp last night about where he was getting his portion of the money from" (LONDON TIMES, 7/28). BLOOMBERG NEWS' Tariq Panja noted Hicks and Gillett had borrowed the $477.9M from their available $577.3M credit facility, which expired last week (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 7/27).
FREE TRADE: SI.com's John Heyman cited sources as saying that the MLB Rangers were "bailed out in two straight pay periods by the commissioner's office." However, MLB Commissioner Bud Selig has "no plans to step in to prevent any big-money deal they may make, no matter what owner Tom Hicks' personal financial situation is." Selig said that teams are "free to do what they see fit." But Heyman wrote of the Rangers' reported interest in trading for and signing Blue Jays P Roy Halladay, "It would seem odd to commit $23[M] to a pitcher when you're having difficulty making current payroll demands." An exec with another team interested in Halladay said Hicks "can't be involved in this. He just has too much pride to tell his front office" (SI.com, 7/27).
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