Singapore signing moves forward with Newcastle United offer

Singapore-backed firm Bellagraph Nova says it is going ahead with its bid for Newcastle United Football Club.

One of the firm’s co-founders, Evangeline Shen, told the BBC that her team is in regular contact with the Premier League club.

Bellagraph Nova has been the subject of several revelations since its offer was revealed in August.

The company has been criticized for inconsistencies over its assets and has retracted press statements.

Bellagraph Nova was particularly criticized for a photograph of its three founders meeting with former US President Barack Obama.

The revelations about the group have been widely covered by the Singaporean media.

Shen co-founded Bellagraph Nova with his business partners and cousins ​​Nelson Loh and Terence Loh. All three are directors of the Paris-based group.

The newly merged group is a complex network of companies spread across consumer goods, luxury goods, and healthcare.

Newcastle Offer

In an exclusive interview, Ms Shen told the BBC that “bidding on Newcastle is part of our strategy because they are a well-known football club, but they still have room for improvement, and we believe that improvement is good for him club and for our brand. ” “.

“We started to really plan for the club, like who to hire as a coach and who to sign for the players,” he added.

The 128-year-old soccer club is owned by billionaire retailer Mike Ashley, who put it up for sale in 2017.

A £ 300 million offer submitted by the Saudi Private Investment Fund fell through in August due to lengthy negotiations.

Bellagraph Nova then stepped in with a £ 280 million offer, but has since been mired in controversy.

But Ms. Chen is confident in the search for Newcastle United. “We are always in contact and we continue to be very aggressive in trying to close the deal.

“I can tell you that our team met again with Mike Ashley’s representative last week at the process in Paris.”

Of nothing

On its corporate website, Bellagraph Nova says it has 23,000 employees and 2019 revenue of $ 12 billion (£ 9.3 billion).

Mak Yuen Teen, a Singapore-based corporate governance expert, said it is not unusual for some companies to exaggerate their credentials or “disguise themselves as a showcase.”

“I’ve seen publicly traded companies continually misrepresent themselves, including on the Singapore Stock Exchange, advertising deals that are bogus, using fake securities, but this is on a whole new level,” he said.

Since Bellagraph Nova and its entities are not publicly listed on any stock exchange apart from a related company called Axington, their claims about income and employees cannot be easily verified.

“It is quite unbelievable that a $ 12 billion company with 23,000 employees appears out of nowhere. They will most likely claim potential partners as part of their business,” added Yuen, associate professor of accounting at the National University of Singapore.

Speaking of the revenue and employee figures, Ms. Shen said that “the calculation we have is generic because we can only rely on what our partner firms and our subsidiaries tell us to consolidate.”

“I understand that the numbers may seem large, but given the nature of the online business, it is very normal to have many employees,” he added.

Failed offer

Observers remain skeptical of the Bellagraph Nova’s ambitions.

“The offer has turned into a disaster for bidders and appears dead in the water,” said Kevin McCullagh, senior Asia analyst at SportBusiness.

“Soccer clubs have always attracted colorful investors and owners, often drawn by the allure of a high-profile asset and the status it can bring, rather than a business case,” added McCullagh.

In recent years, the interest of Asian investors in British football clubs has increased.

English Premier League football club Wolves was bought by Chinese leisure group Fosun, while rival Leicester City is owned by Thai travel retail group King Power.

Newcastle United Football Club declined to comment on the offer when approached by the BBC.