Spanish bank Bankia has demanded that La Liga side Valencia's majority shareholder VCF Foundation and its guarantor, the Valencian government, "complete a payment" of €4.8M ($6.4M) in interest from a loan the VCF Foundation received in '09 for €81M ($108M), according to the EP. The VCF Foundation used that loan to purchase 72.5% of shares in the team. The VCF Foundation has paid €1.3M ($1.7M) of the €4.8M that it owes. Bankia is "demanding that the remaining" €3.5M ($4.7M) be paid in the next two days. Bankia warned that it will "take legal action if the payment is not made" (EP, 8/27). FOOTBALL ESPANA reported that the fee "could not be met by the group and that their shares could once more be at risk of changing hands." Bankia is still "appealing a court ruling barring the local government from acting as a guarantor and taking over management of the club's financial situation." In a statement from VCF Foundation President Aurelio Martinez, it was announced that the "firm intention is to meet their obligations agreed with Bankia and any other creditor." The group added that it plans to "generate their own resources in the coming months to meet their obligations" (FOOTBALL ESPANA, 8/28).
