Nigel Morris joins Swansea City board after investment
- Published
Andy Coleman was named Swansea City chairman in May.
Swansea City have appointed British businessman Nigel Morris to their board after confirming his investment in the Championship club.
Morris, the co-founder of finance firm Capital One, will become a minority shareholder with an injection of cash believed to be close to £10m.
It comes after Swansea also secured investment from US businessman Andy Coleman who became chairman last month after buying a "significant shareholding" in Swansea.
Coleman said: "We will continue to ensure that the club remains financially stable and positioned for long-term success and this investment helps improve the club's financial position."
Swansea's supporters trust - themselves a shareholder in the club - say the 64-year-old's investment will see him take "just under a 20% share in ownership".
Morris, who is based in the US, will also invest directly into the football club rather than via Swansea's existing American ownership., who the Trust say "remain fully committed to the club."
Swansea's board had been keen to attract new investment and have been involved in talks with Morris over the past six months.
It does not represent a takeover at the Welsh club, although the shareholding of others - including majority shareholders Steve Kaplan and Jason Levien - will be diluted.
Currently a managing partner at QED Investors, Morris is said to have Welsh heritage and he said: "I'm delighted to have invested in Swansea City. The club has superb facilities and is front and centre of the community.
"The supporters are the most important part of any club, and I have been taken aback by the passion and integrity shown by the many people I have already met on a number of recent visits to matches.
"I hope I can play a part in Swansea City's future success, and I am very much looking forward to working closely with Andy and club executives to embrace short and long-term objectives."
Coleman added: "Nigel has great credentials and a wealth of business acumen that will be invaluable to the club going forward as we work together to achieve success both on and off the pitch.
"We will continue to ensure that the club remains financially stable and positioned for long-term success and this investment helps improve the club's financial position.
"I've spoken with Nigel on many occasions, and we are fully aligned in our vision of a shared commitment of helping to deliver success for the football club."
The Trust say their stake in the club will be diluted to just below 12% as a result of the investment, but have welcomed the news and say they have already held several meetings with Morris.
In a statement, they said; "This investment will provide the club with new working capital as we approach pre-season, and we hope it will be used to support improvements to the playing squad in the coming months, upgrades to the club's infrastructure and contribute towards the clubs' overhead costs."
Swansea are currently without a chief executive with Julian Winter leaving the club, although that is yet to be formally announced.
Paul Watson, chief operating officer at Luton Town, is expected to be named Swansea's new sporting director.