Saturday, March 28, 2009

Liverpool FC Owner Tom Hicks Out To Find Partners

Tom Hicks is looking to sell a big minority stake in his Texas Rangers baseball team.

Hicks, who co-owns Liverpool with George Gillett, has announced that he wants potential investors for the Rangers and his Dallas Stars ice hockey team, in which he has 95 per cent stakes.

He said: “I’m looking quietly, and have been for the last four or five months, for minority investors to come back into to the Rangers.

“I’m doing the same thing with the Stars.

"At the end of the day, I’ll still have 51-to-60% of the ballclub and have new partners.

"That doesn’t change anything.

I started out owning 55% and over the past 10 years I’ve been slowly buying out partners that wanted to sell.

“It’s not a big deal at all.

“I don’t think I need to own 95% of any team..

"There aren’t many owners who own 95%..

"In times like these, you like to reduce your debt and diversify your investments.”

Hicks owns 95% of both the Rangers and the Stars.

He is willing to let up to 49% of each club be owned by minority investors, allowing him to keep majority ownership.

The development comes after Gillett called in leading banks to conduct a review his global assets.

The Reds co-owners have until July 24 to refinance a £350m debt they arranged with the Royal Bank of Scotland and Wachovia just over a year ago.

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