West Bromwich Albion have stated that American entrepreneur Shilen Patel has agreed to purchase the Championship club, with the transaction scheduled to be approved next week.
West Bromwich Albion has a new owner after medical magnate Shilen Patel agreed to buy the club.
The Baggies have been seeking a buyer for the past two years and the deal is thought to be valued in the region of £60m bringing to an end the tenure of Lai Guochuan.
Chinese entrepreneur Lai bought the club from Jeremy Peace eight years ago in a deal worth more than £175m. But after West Brom ’s failure to return to the Premier League following its’ demotion at the end of the 2021 season it has been losing substantial amounts of cash.
The club owes £28m to finance company MSD and the deal has been brokered in the nick of time as it was thought to be running low on cash.
Patel’s father, Kiran, amassed a fortune in medical supplies worth an estimated $400 million. And his son now owns a software company in Florida and runs the family business.
He is said to have tight ties to MSD, the principal creditors, and will attend tomorrow’s match versus Southampton.
According to a statement on the club’s official website, Bilkul Football WBA, LLC, which is ultimately owned by Florida-based entrepreneur Shilen Patel and his father Dr Kiran C. Patel, has reached an agreement to acquire an 87.8 percent stake in West Bromwich Albion Group Limited, the parent company of West Bromwich Albion Football Club.
“The EFL has accepted the takeover, and the exchange and completion will take place next week.
“Shilen Patel, who will also be named Chairman of the football club, is a serial investor with experience in technology, healthcare, sports, real estate, finance, food and beverage, and a variety of other industries spanning five continents.” He has held a minority stake in Serie A club Bologna FC 1909 since 2014.
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