Blackpool FC owner's case moves to higher court

Simon Sadler says he will vigorously defend himself

The insider trading case against the owner of Blackpool FC Simon Sadler and a former trader has been moved to a higher court in Hong Kong.

The transfer of the case against Asian hedge fund Segantii Capital Management was approved by The Eastern Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) said last month it had started criminal proceedings against Segantii, its founder and chief investment officer Mr Sadler, and former trader Daniel La Rocca on suspicion of insider dealing in the shares of a Hong Kong-listed company before a block trade in June 2017.

Segantii has said it will "defend itself vigorously" against the charges.

Block trade

Block trading is a financial transaction in which banks offload blocks of shares privately.

Mr Sadler, Mr La Rocca and Segantii CEO Kurt Ersoy declined to comment on the charges when approached outside the court room.

The charges relate to insider information about Hong Kong-listed fashion chain Esprit Holdings.

The next hearing is scheduled to take place at the district court on 2 July.

The Lancashire businessman took ownership of Blackpool FC in June 2019.

Born and raised in the town, he was educated at the former Warbreck High School, gained a business degree at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST), and previously worked for large multi-national companies in London, Moscow and Hong Kong.

Mr Sadler founded Segantii in 2007, naming the business after a pre-Roman tribe once believed to have occupied the present-day Fylde Coast.