Everton investment: Toffees reach exclusivity agreement with MSP Sports Capital
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Everton are currently two points above the relegation zone
Everton have reached an exclusivity agreement with New York-based company MSP Sports Capital for investment in the club, BBC Sport understands.
Sources say the deal is not yet done but talks are progressing over funding.
MSP looks to have jumped ahead of 777 Partners, which had been in talks over a takeover from owner Farhad Moshiri.
The club require funding for their new stadium, being built on Bramley Moore Dock, after costs increased from £500m to about £760m.
And in their latest accounts, the club posted financial losses for a fifth successive year. Their losses have totalled more than £430m over that period.
The Toffees are currently two points above the Premier League's relegation zone with one game remaining.
However, the Toffees will drop into the bottom three if Leicester win at Newcastle on Monday (20:00 BST).
MSP is believed to be looking for a 25% stake with a preferential share structure, not equity in the club, so would be paid back in interest.
777 has had access to the 'data room' (financial accounts), but has not been prepared to pay a 'significant' price owing to the debt on the balance sheet - which stood at £141.7m in the latest accounts., external
Can Everton ever be great again?
In February, Moshiri told the fans' advisory board, external the club was "not for sale" but he had been talking to "top investors of real quality".
British-Iranian businessman Moshiri has invested more than £750m of his own money since 2016, but some supporters are deeply unhappy about his ownership of the club.
Toffees fans have held protests before some home games this season and have called for Moshiri and the board to leave the club.
It is understood MSP will likely expect representation in the boardroom if it does complete a minority investment in the club.
An exclusivity agreement is described as a document in which a prospective buyer and seller agree to deal solely with each other in anticipation of an exchange of contracts by the end of a fixed period of time.
In this case, it protects MSP from being outbid by another party but it does not offer full protection from that happening outside of the specified time period.
What is MSP?
Senior figures from MSP Sports Capital attended Everton's 2-1 home defeat by Southampton on 14 January
MSP Sports Capital describes itself as an investor in sports teams, leagues and businesses that "pursue ambitious, challenging tasks".
Its current portfolio includes European clubs such as Brondby in Denmark, Augsburg in Germany and Estoril of Portugal.
Its chairman, Iranian-American billionaire Jahm Najafi, is the vice-chairman of McLaren and also a minority owner of NBA team Phoenix Suns.
He attended the defeat by Southampton at Goodison Park in January and his net worth was valued at £2.9bn by the Paddock Magazine, external in 2021.
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