Swansea City: Championship side in talks over new investment

The Swansea.com Stadium changed its name from the Liberty Stadium in August 2021

Swansea City have held talks over securing fresh investment into the Championship club.

The club's US owners are open to bringing a new a minority stakeholder on board to provide a financial boost.

Discussions with interested parties are understood to have taken place.

It would not see the Swans the subject of a takeover, with majority shareholders Steve Kaplan, Jason Levien and Jake Silverstein said to be still committed to the club.

Swansea, in their fifth season in the Championship after relegation from the Premier League in 2018, are keen to ease the hit of ongoing losses and help towards financial stability.

They reported a pre-tax loss of £4.6m in their accounts last year - which covered the pandemic-hit 2020/21 season - although their debt level was among the lowest in the second-tier.

Any deal is likely to be similar to the investment made by Silverstein when he joined the Welsh side's board in 2020, four years after the initial takeover by a group led by American businessmen Kaplan and Levien during the club's stay in the Premier League.

Silverstein's introduction saw an initial injection of cash via loans, with those matched by existing owners and then converted into equity.

And the news of potential new investment comes as Swansea confirmed conversion of the last of those loans into equity, described by the club as "part of an ongoing commitment by the club's ownership group to reduce debt and improve the club's financial stability".

Swansea's owners have faced criticism following the sales of several key players in recent seasons, while a lack of signings in January's transfer window saw many fans voice their frustrations.

Silverstein stated in February there had been an investment of £16m from the ownership group since his involvement.

The latest equity investment means the shareholding of Swansea's Supporters Trust has been reduced, although they retain a protected 5% stake.

In a statement on the latest conversion, the Trust said: "It is our collective view that the club should operate with only sustainable debt - if that means more equity must be released to support this, then it is a position that we accept.

"We… would prefer any investment to be targeted at playing squad improvements or upgrades to the club's infrastructure, and not to cover shortfalls in the club's accounts.

"We know that this is shared by all concerned with Swansea City, but the club is not financially sustainable enough to do this yet.

"Our outgoings are still higher than what we bring in through commercial revenue and player sales.

"This balance is something we are continuously discussing with the owners and senior management team."