The Takeover Thread - Recon Group - NOW WITH NEW POLL

[Tony Erdington]

Jonathon ross is saying something about wacism and wough justice in football, but wucked if I get his gist.

So who's buying us?

[Louzie0]

May as well try to pick up a bit of the lingo just in case.

What's Mandarin for "for fuck's sake N'Zogbia"?

What's Mandarin for "sleepwalking into relegation"?

What about "How far have we fallen" or "Why didn't Barry take the penalty"?

"为什么不采取巴里点球?"

Cracking Chinese interpretation. 

What if it's South American, though? Asian? Or African?


Ooooh. No idea, really! 
Just hope they are into The Villa!

[Pat McMahon]

May as well try to pick up a bit of the lingo just in case.

What's Mandarin for "for fuck's sake N'Zogbia"?

What's Mandarin for "sleepwalking into relegation"?

Haha, like it Richard E!
What about "How far have we fallen" or "Why didn't Barry take the penalty"?

"为什么不采取巴里点球?"

[Dante Lavelli]

What is the protocol with these non-disclosure agreements?  For example is there a legal maximum period and is there an obligation to make the fact an agreement exists public?  Ultimately, when did this one start and how much time is left (if it 'expires')?

[ChicagoLion]

What is the protocol with these non-disclosure agreements?  For example is there a legal maximum period and is there an obligation to make the fact an agreement exists public?  Ultimately, when did this one start and how much time is left (if it 'expires')?

Non Disclosure agreements are normally ad infinitum (without end).

Exclusivity Agreements are over a fixed period but can be extended.

[villadelph]

What is the protocol with these non-disclosure agreements?  For example is there a legal maximum period and is there an obligation to make the fact an agreement exists public?  Ultimately, when did this one start and how much time is left (if it 'expires')?

I'm more concerned about the clause to purchase after the due diligence. I assume that as this potential buyer digs through our accounts that other suitors are exempt from doing the same and posing offers. If this period of exclusivity amounts to a refusal to buy then this entire 6-week evaluation just leaves us further in limbo.

I just don't want the club to waste any more time then they already have. Six weeks may be the necessary amount of time to conduct such a thorough evaluation, but in this business six weeks is an eternity, especially when preparation for next year is paramount.

[ROBBO]

Surely with an exclusivity agreement the purchase amount has been agreed upon and if the purchaser pulls out without adequate reason i.e the books are shonky then there can be financial penalties.

[silhillvilla]

Jonathon ross is saying something about wacism and wough justice in football, but wucked if I get his gist.

So who's buying us?

Way Wansom

[Dante Lavelli]

Surely with an exclusivity agreement the purchase amount has been agreed upon and if the purchaser pulls out without adequate reason i.e the books are shonky then there can be financial penalties.

I'd agree with that.  Unless the books have been cooked then I'd imagine it is pretty much a formality. 

[paul_e]

Surely with an exclusivity agreement the purchase amount has been agreed upon and if the purchaser pulls out without adequate reason i.e the books are shonky then there can be financial penalties.

Yep, due diligence should just b a case of the buyer confirming that the company records match with the details they were presented during the negotiations, the price and terms of sale will already have been agreed so if we've been honest in the sales pitch and accounts there really shouldn't be any problems.

[mamuu]

there's more to dd than that.
They'll want to ensure all the assets the club think it owns it actually does own, for example. They'll be interested in how the club monetises its intellectual property and how its protected in the various markets it trades in. They'll want to know what their exposure is in relation to the playing staff and will want to go through their (and the club's staff) contracts. They'll want to ensure that the debt is properly managed and will no doubt be negotiating Randy's exit at the same time. These things don't normally run in sequence - there's usually a lot of parallel activity going on, so don't be fooled into thinking they won't start negotiating properly until the buyers are happy. They'll just be reserving their rights whether to proceed or not. Even if dd does uncover some proverbial skeletons, Randy will probably be able to get them comfortable by covering their exposure with warranties or some kind of financial guarantee.

[gpbarr]

As a banker (expecting abuse just for saying that!), the period of exclusivity follows a Letter of Intent (in which a range of purchase price is provisionally agreed however is non binding). So no the terms will not have been agreed up front - this period allows the prospective buyer to bring their team (lawyers, accountants, auditors etc) to the table to pour over the books to audit that no skeletons are in the cupboard and that if they then submit a binding offer, it's based on fact).

The good news is exclusivity is ordinarily only given when the buyers credentials have already been assessed as good because the seller is giving them a window in which he excludes all others.

And 6 weeks is short by the way - we typically demand 10 weeks when buying companies.


UTV!

[Ads]

there's more to dd than that.
They'll want to ensure all the assets the club think it owns it actually does own, for example. They'll be interested in how the club monetises its intellectual property and how its protected in the various markets it trades in. They'll want to know what their exposure is in relation to the playing staff and will want to go through their (and the club's staff) contracts. They'll want to ensure that the debt is properly managed and will no doubt be negotiating Randy's exit at the same time. These things don't normally run in sequence - there's usually a lot of parallel activity going on, so don't be fooled into thinking they won't start negotiating properly until the buyers are happy. They'll just be reserving their rights whether to proceed or not. Even if dd does uncover some proverbial skeletons, Randy will probably be able to get them comfortable by covering their exposure with warranties or some kind of financial guarantee.

It depends on the type of sale anyway. If they're is a lot of toxic issues hidden across everything RA Ltd owns, then they can pick and choose which assets they want with novations being agreed.

Most of the toxic assets are in our back four mind and owned by AVFC and even if they weren't, TUPE means we could have them leave Bennett behind.

[PR88]

If reports in France are to be believed and we've had a bid accepted for Jordan Amavi then maybe the takeover is further down the line than we think?? Also says that Villa have tabled an attractive offer to him.

[paul_e]

As a banker (expecting abuse just for saying that!), the period of exclusivity follows a Letter of Intent (in which a range of purchase price is provisionally agreed however is non binding). So no the terms will not have been agreed up front - this period allows the prospective buyer to bring their team (lawyers, accountants, auditors etc) to the table to pour over the books to audit that no skeletons are in the cupboard and that if they then submit a binding offer, it's based on fact).

The good news is exclusivity is ordinarily only given when the buyers credentials have already been assessed as good because the seller is giving them a window in which he excludes all others.

And 6 weeks is short by the way - we typically demand 10 weeks when buying companies.


UTV!

My response was really more to try to state that deciding against it for no good reason at this stage would be highly unusual, by now both parties know roughly what the deal is and what expectations there are so if our data we've presented is correct (i.e. no skeletons) then it's highly likely that the sale will go through, it's generally only if one party has been less than honest that a deal falls apart at this stage.