Impecuniosity and credulity

When Mr King’s impecuniosity was admitted at the Court of Session yesterday it immediately presented several problems for the Sevco High Command.

Firstly they all believed, at one time or another, that the South African based entrepreneur’s wealth would finally make a game changing appearance at Ibrox.

Mr King’s preferred narrative was that he was having difficulty in transporting his vast wealth because of South African currency regulations etc.

There was never a doubt in the Blue Room that “Dave” was in funds.

Some of them even loaned Mr King money on the strength of that.

Oops.

Also, the notes in the published accounts of RIFC since 2015 have made much of the willingness of the directors to stump up to cover the losses of the five-year-old club.

The members of the Sevco High Command who were actually shouldering the most of the financial burden largely did so because they believed that one day Dave would pony up.

I don’t think anyone in the Blue Room now thinks that will happen.

A cynic might say that they’ve been had by a glib and shameless liar.

I, on the other hand, couldn’t possibly comment.

The thing is, the figure that Mr King’s counsel claimed that he was unable to raise is close the amount that Sevco need to keep going this season.

Mr King’s counsel stated yesterday that the convicted criminal had no direct control over the funds in New Oasis Asset Limited (NOAL).

This is from the RIFC accounts of 2016:

New Oasis Asset Limited

Shareholder

On 22 May 2015, the company entered into a loan agreement with New Oasis Asset Limited totalling £1.5m repayable in December 2015. Since this date, this loan has been available on demand and New Oasis Asset Limited has advised that they will extend the facilities available whilst the funds are required by the Club.

In December 2015, a further loan facility of £3m was agreed, of which £2.2m has been drawn down at the year-end.

This amount remains outstanding at 30 June 2016 and is due for repayment in December 2017. New Oasis Asset Limited is a company controlled by the Group Chairman, Mr D King. No interest or fees are to be charged in respect of the facilities and the loan is being provided on an unsecured basis.

 

You can find it on page 55 here.

Oh dear.

Awkward…

The problem with Mr King is that he loves the limelight, he loves to boast.

This was never truer than just after the Off Licence Putsch in July 2015 he invited the cameras into his heavily mortgaged home in Jo’Burg.

In fact, I broke the story of the impending puff piece, much to the bafflement of the folk at Skysports.

You see, dear reader, the trip to South Africa by Mr White was meant to be a closely guarded secret.

You can view it here.

For the avoidance of doubt, the lavishly stocked wine cellar didn’t last long after this hard-hitting love in.

Apparently, the folks at SARS thought that this asset belonged to them.

During this romantic encounter, Mr King made much of wanting to re-negotiate the retail deal with General Ashley.

Earlier this year it was announced that the hated arrangement with Sports Direct had been ripped up.

It was hailed by the chaps on the sports desks major victory for Mr King.

Despite the furious spinning by the stenographers what Big Mike has now is BETTER than what he gave up earlier this year.

I would not be surprised that if Mr King does ride off into the South African then the real nature of the new retail deal will be finally revealed.

What I do know is that that the new arrangement is with RIFC and not Sevco.

The financial beneficiaries of the orgy of buying at the superstore were Ashley and Puma.

Once more the fans have been conned and the stenographers have played their part in the ruse.

The case has now been heard in the outer house of the Court of Session and the judgment will be handed down by Lord Bannatyne in due course.

At least we now know that Mr David Cunningham King does not have the putative wealth that so enthused The People back in March 2015.

Indeed, it was the promise of funds to bankroll the Engine Room Subsidiary that purchased their loyalty in the Off Licence Putsch.

It is almost as if he had been lying to them the whole time.

Almost…

 

 

Nota bene:

A hat tip to Al Lamont of the BBC.

He was in court yesterday and his tweeted adumbrations of the proceedings did the state some service.

Sadly, his employers had him elsewhere today.

Thankfully the fine folk of Scottish Football Monitor were on the case.

Chapeau.

36 thoughts on “Impecuniosity and credulity”

  1. Had a laugh out loud moment when I read the headlines that Regan would welcome a high net worth individual helping out with the new Scotland manager’s salary in order to attract a bette class of candidate.
    Oh hang on I thought access to additional funds didn’t provide a sporting advantage!
    His one condition was that the SFA oard had the final say in selection ……………aye they have a pretty good record when it comes appointing managers.
    Is this the same SFA that some months ago asked fans to complete an online questionaire on all things Scottish football……with not a single fan in the country trusting anything they say or do will we ever get feedback?
    I hear the caller at the bingo hall in Rutherglen Main Street has been approached to manage future Scottish Cup draws. By all accounts he’s a true professional, never has to restart a game, and has never confused a 6 with a 9. He’s also cheap and his travel expenses won’t put a dent in the SFA executive bonuses.
    Wonder how Regan’s getting on with rolling out the long awaited drug testing programme? At the moment the chances of a player being drug tested is akin to the odds of me winning the lottery.
    Of course we all know that there is no drug problem in Scottish football, we would just like to see the proof Mr Regan.

    Reply
    • Further reason to hire the caller from the venue on Rutherglen Main Street is that he’s used to handling up to 90 balls over a two or three hour period.
      Not a measly 32 in a one of Scottish Cup draw…..I’m beginning to think that this is actually a goer and have suggested so to Stuey, at least if another balls up occurs the SFA can claim some distance from the scene.

      Reply
    • New manager

      Same old names, same old results

      Dreaming of big names they can never afford

      No skill to find young potential within their budget

      SFA – Too useless to even imagine how useless they are

      Reply
  2. It’s a common problem amongst people of such calibre to have these problems, you see they move in the higher echelons of finance and its well known that Dave does actually have the cash, it’s just nobody has change of a billion pound note…. Or was that billion Zob note, not sure what currency is used in their universe these days…

    Reply
  3. Those suggesting that King may receive a crafty Scottish slap on the wrist from Lord B should remind themselves that an appeal would go to the Supreme Court in London.

    On such a serious matter, brotherly love has its limits when it comes to saving a worthless embarrassment like King and a walking cadaver like RIFC plc.

    Reply
  4. Fortunately because the issue has much wider implications than happenings in Bonnie Scotland the judgement will be poured over by the legal fraternity at the highest levels.
    No one previously has failed to comply with a TOP ruling so a precedent will be set in this instance, a weighty precedent which will be referenced to in any similar future cases.
    In these circumstances a slap on the wrist would render the TOP as irrelevant and others would be queuing up to follow where King has led.
    The judge has already dismissed King’s counsel’s claim that his client was ignorant of the rules, despite Letham’s smoking gun e mail which clearly pointed out that the concert party would breach the 30% ruling.
    Not knowing, or claiming ignorance of the law is no defence that’s where the legal eagles come in with their very expensive advice.
    Given King’s history with the years spent fighting SARS it’s no surprise that he’s willing to take on the TOP and if he’s unhappy with the Court Of Session ruling what next, Supreme Court appeal?
    He must be wracking up some very expensive legal bills, perhaps the family trust will help him out.

    Reply
    • Interesting times Anthony. I think that the 2016 audited accounts to 30/6/16 were published towards the end of October 2016 so we should expect a similar timetable for the 2017 version.
      The auditors will have completed their work and should be signing off on the accounts now. Given that future trading warnings have been included in the notes to the accounts in previous years, but the auditors were happy to sign them off based on guarantees of funding from the Board, what impact will King’s claim of being skint have on them.
      The other members of the concert party will have to guarantee that they will cover future losses and cash requirements as they fall due over the next financial year. It’s a tough call with £6.25m of previous loans due to be repaid in December 2017 and not a hope in hell ‘ s chance of a share issue where they could swop debt for equity.
      Even if they could then they might find themselves in exactly the same position as their leader.

      Reply
  5. What is it that attracts these shady characters to Ibrox , is it a gullible support , well at least this time its a real ranjurs man taking them to the cleaners .

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  6. He was talking of amounts between £30 to £50m when he swept to power and the media tripped over themselves to get on board and go with the flow.
    Even though a verdict may be a few weeks away this is a kick in the nuts for the other concert party members some of whom have loaned King money because Dave was having trouble with those pesky SA exchange folks.
    No more talk of £30/50m, no more talk of over investment.
    Money is needed between now and Xmas. Those who have chipped in so far, believing King’s tales of riches tomorrow, now have their backs to the wall…….stick or twist?
    They are already looking at writing off their contributions so far, are they stupid enough to throw more money into the black hole now that King has declared himself skint?
    Of course its a double edged sword. If they fail to step up and admin beckons then they can be assured that the finger of blame is pointed straight at them.
    This is not the news that will endear them to the fan base, of that there is no doubt.

    Reply
    • If I were those guys, I’d use the opportunity of this court case to cut and run. No way could King pin blame on them when they have ponied up millions and you have the words of his own counsel that King is skint.

      No, King would get blamed but only if they act quickly.

      Reply
  7. The BBC have just posted an article with the headline “king is not a poor businessman” this is supposed to be reference to him being called “not a poor innocent” talk about trying to mislead the reader his entire defence has been he is a poor businessman.The BBC!!

    Reply
  8. How much will Lord Davidson of Glen Clova charge King for describing him as “penniless” in open court?

    And how much will King pay?

    Tell me you got at least some of the money up front Lord D – no seriously – you did get some money up front – right – didn’t you ?!?

    Reply
  9. You can fool all of the people some of the time and you can fool some of the people all of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. Unless it’s the “We ara people”, in which case you can rip the piss right out of them anytime you like!!!

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  10. I see Lord B will be giving his judgement in due course. Does the man have no sense of theatre – no verve – no joie be vivre – it’s bloody Friday the thirteenth man.

    Ibrox has already bagged St Valentines’s day and you could have gifted them Friday 13th on the bingo card of unforgettable corporate malfeasance – shame on you Lord B and your so called due process.

    Reply
    • The St Valentine’s Day Massacre in 2012 was certainly a most memorable occasion but don’t forget Independence Day, when the SPL rejected Sevco’s application to replace Rangers on 4th July that same year. I’d take that above Friday 13th any day!

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  11. Word on the street is that it’s not a forgone conclusion and that the boss eyed conman isn’t quite done yet. I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest he seems to wriggle and or lie his way out of any situation.

    Reply
    • He’s gonna stroll, I’m sure of it, he always does and most especially when the real ‘king’ of this deliberately complicated farrago is the knight who always swoops in to protect his patsies at the end.

      Today was the day and any judicial ‘ruminations’ have a dash of the old right hand about them and you could stick a house on the certainty of that.

      Reply
      • I understand where I you are coming from – so many rules and laws have been applied so weakly by so long with excrutiating delays in the Ranger affair that it is hard to believe that the whip will come downhard on King at long last.

        but Lord B has to make or break the take over code in law. This is the first case to test it since it became law rather than an optional gentlemen’s agreement code of practice.

        We are no longer talking about parochial Scottish sport and local tribal sensibilities but the integrity of the City of London and FTSE companies: banks, insurance, oil, defence, IT, retail. Lord B is not thinking about Rangers. He must think about protecting the UK’s blue chip companies in the shark pool of global corporate spivery on a scale that King can only dream of: BAE, BA, Shell, BP, Tesco, Sainsbury, AstraZenica, Diageo, Unilever, ARM, Virgin, Prudential, Lloyds, HSBC, Barclays etc etc

        King and Rangers are irrelevant drone kill in this scenario. Don’t expect the tribal vindictiveness many would like, but don’t expect an L5 view of the world.

        Reply
        • The corporate takeover’s already happened, CC, this is just the windae dressing.

          And if they decide to make it suit them then nothing will stop it, no matter how many objections may be raised either in court or elsewhere.

          And I do believe the lame duck walks again.

          Reply
          • The Takeover Panel does not aim to turn back time – but it does aim to have the perps make amends – and if they defiantly refuse – aim ton prevent them the opportunity of doing so again. King already has a reputation that will prevent him ever doing business in the City of London again. Association with RIFC puts it in the same pariah state. Most transgressors apply some enlightened self interest and do not take their defiance as far as King. He is daring the Takeover Panel to twat him – and if they don’t face him down – then the rogues charter referred to in court will be officially in place.

            btw, check out the members of the Takeover Commitee who made the decision. These are not the feeble brained, weak principled, blue tinted, greasy pole climbing administrators that King has trounced so far. He is way out of his league.

          • I know who the original committee members are but its no longer those men in place.

            John James made the same point as my own only yesterday, but with a lot more mockery of Freemasonsry and how the judge’s final verdict is dependent on certain other, ‘factors’, shall we say, coming into play.

            And, yes, RIFC already has pariah status thanks to King’s glib & shameless antics but it will be very instructive indeed to see how this one plays out when the fair minded judge faces the multifaceted gangster.

  12. A wise man once told me that, if you’re going to tell lies, you need a truly fabulous and accurate memory. Telling the truth can stand small lapses of memory but lies soon involve the teller in a tangled mess which is usually easily exposed as a farrago of untruths. It seems that Squint Eastward (oh, how I love that nickname – totally apposite) is finding that out to his cost.

    Reply
    • Another good lying tip is only lie about things you absolutely have to in order to get what you want – keep the ratio of truths to lies extremely high – then the very suggestion of lying sounds implausible. Dave, on the other hand, can’t tell the truth about what he had for breakfast and even finds it hard to tell the same lie about what he had for breakfast more than once.

      p.s. If you need my tips about lying – you’re probably not cut out for it – best tell the truth eh

      Reply
      • John Steinbeck wrote in East of Eden that the antagonists truths always contained a kernel of a lie, and vice versa, with the truths, so that when she was telling the truth, people thought she was lying, and then when she was found out to be telling the truth, she then had a lot of leeway for her future lies. I’ve paraphrased a fair bit there, but I’m sure you get the idea. Dave King hasn’t employed this technique, however, he’s just a filthy liar…

        Reply
  13. Once again Phil, Yer on the money.

    Just to touch on the subject of the @better than what he had shirt deal’, I beleive all they mean by that is, selling some shirts is better than selling no shirts. As for the Money king hasn’t got. I wish i had the money he hasn’t got. He Has it, you can be sure of that. His problem is SARS are watching him and his families money movements like a hawk and one false move and King will wish he had the money i havn’t got either, which amounts to about £56 and a few pence.

    Reply
  14. It’s not even that King is a good liar – in fact he is a really crap liar with the memory of a newt – he contradicts himself all the time.

    It’s that a lot of people simply do not want to accept he is a habitual lair because he offers their only alternative to confronting the grim reality of their true situation.

    Even hardened, multi-millionaire businessmen are prone to niave wishful thinking when it comes to Rangers.

    Reply
  15. The Court should have been full of Scottish journalists but they would prefer to wait for the L5 churn to ensure they got the story right…

    Reply

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