“John Textor Accelerates Sale of Crystal Palace Stake to Focus on Everton Acquisition”
US businessman John Textor’s pursuit of Everton is entering a critical phase as he looks to expedite the sale of his stake in Crystal Palace.
Textor currently holds 45 percent of the Selhurst Park club and has engaged the Raine Group, a merchant bank, to manage the sale of his Palace shares while he intensifies his efforts to acquire Everton.
Textor had initially set a tentative deadline for late September for written expressions of interest in his Palace stake. However, his intention to buy out Everton’s current owner, Farhad Moshiri, has accelerated the entire sale process, not just the bidding phase.
Approximately 14 parties have shown initial interest with Raine, with a smaller number aggressively pursuing the deal.
There is now optimism that the process is nearing completion, with parties expecting news of a preferred bidder soon.
A few ‘serious bidders’ have indicated their readiness to complete a swift transaction and assured they have the financial resources, which aligns with Textor’s goal of acquiring Everton.
However, sources also caution that the possibility of a sale to one of the less aggressive parties shouldn’t be ruled out.
It was revealed over the weekend that investment firm Aliya Capital Partners is supporting Textor’s acquisition of Moshiri’s 94.1 percent stake in Everton. Last week, Everton confirmed that while ‘positive conversations’ had occurred with Textor, more work remains to finalize the deal.