(Boursier.com) — The candidacy of Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani to take over Manchester United would raise some questions on the side of London. According to the ‘traditional’ people familiar with the matter quoted by ‘Bloomberg’, British government officials have privately expressed their concerns about Qatar’s takeover bid for ManU.
The reservations, voiced internally in recent weeks by senior government officials working on football governance, reportedly centered on earlier regulatory failings at the UK unit of Qatar Islamic Bank, of which Sheikh Jassim has been chairman since 2006. While there is no suggestion the UK is about to step in to block the Qatari bid, UK government concerns suggest ministers could pressure the Premier League to ask their own questions when it will carry out its ‘due diligence’ of the contenders for the takeover of the club in the north of England.
The agency explains that the officials’ reservations relate to Sheikh Jassim’s management of QIB, including a £1.4million fine imposed on its UK branch in 2016 by the Bank of England for breaching capital requirements. which exposed the company to high levels of risk. Andrew Bailey, then CEO of the Prudential Regulation Authority and now Governor of the BOE, said at the time that QIB “failed to meet some of the most basic regulatory standards”. The QIB said at the time of the fine it had taken “corrective action”, while the BOE said the establishment had since undergone significant restructuring to end similar breaches. QIB is not expected to play a direct role in Manchester United’s current bid.
The UK faces continued criticism over the governance of its sporting assets and recently unveiled major reforms to the country’s five main football leagues, with an independent regulator focused on financial security, tougher ownership criteria and rules to prevent teams from participating in ‘separatist’ competitions.
The group led by Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe are still considered the two main candidates for the takeover of ManU.
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