Exclusive:Dejphon Chansiri offering gold again in funds bid - Sheffield Wednesday takeover seems distant
Sheffield Wednesday chairman Dejphon Chansiri has again been reaching out to business associates in an attempt to raise cash ahead of further financial pressures this month, The Star understands.
Chansiri’s ownership of the Wednesday has come under huge pressure from supporters and authorities in the last months as financial problems continue to mount. Employees have been paid their monthly salaries late in four of the last six months and various bills have also been delayed in payment, including to HMRC.
The 57-year-old Thai is the subject of appealed-against EFL charges for causing the club to be in breach of EFL Regulations despite his commitment to fund its cash requirements - the club has also been charged for multiple breaches of regulations and looks likely to face a points deduction alongside its continued recruitment restrictions.
On Wednesday evening it was confirmed that the club had been placed under two fresh EFL embargoes; one pertaining to rules around Future Financial Information and one for breaching P&S rules on Secure Funding.
As revealed by The Star in early June, Chansiri is known to have been attempting to raise funds from alternative sources throughout the club’s summer of crisis and The Star understands those efforts have continued in the last weeks as pressure has continued to mount on his finances.
An article in The Times last month reported the Wednesday chairman was looking to sell gold in his attempt to raise the funds to ease his financial concerns and sources have told The Star that the gold has once again been the subject of conversations with business associates in recent weeks; with associates asked either to buy the gold or assist in the selling of it.
No source has been able to offer The Star any suggestion that any takeover is close at this stage, nor that any has been over several months, with continued confusion from some interested parties with regard to any likely asking price. It’s understood there remain parties out there that retain an interest in the club but that some have found a lack of clarity over the finances and process prohibitive.
After the timely satisfaction of workforce salary obligations for August, The Star has been told that employees seeking informal assurances of prompt payment for this month have not received those assurances as of yet. Payday is scheduled for September 30.
That date will also see the £7.4m loan against Hillsborough stadium fall due. It’s understood that a significant percentage of that loan may well be called in by the lender and that as things stand, the terms will not likely be rolled over with interest as has been the agreement up to now.
It’s believed some enforcement options available to the lender in the event of a non-payment could include applying to put the club into administration or appointing a receiver over Hillsborough, which would have the authority to claim rent from the club or ultimately put the stadium up for sale. Should the lender launch both actions at the same time, a suggestion is that an insolvency practitioner could in theory be appointed to manage the sale of both club and stadium as one.