Corriere dello Sport report on the impending ownership change at Inter, with the club set to be acquired by Oaktree Capital. The deadline was initially set for the 20th, however, due to a bank holiday in Luxembourg, where Grand Tower, Inter’s parent company, is based, Steven Zhang has been granted an extra day.
The newspaper write how the intrigue lies in the fact that the final moments of this deal are being played out across three different time zones: Nanjing (six hours ahead of Milan), Luxembourg (aligned with Italy), and Los Angeles (nine hours behind), where Oaktree’s headquarters are located. Nonetheless, the “Inter file” is managed by their London offices.
Once the deadline hits, the procedure for Oaktree to seize the shares will commence. Everything is already in place, including a statement to announce and explain the various steps involved. These steps will follow certain technical timelines. According to the newspapers sources, Oaktree will take control not only of the 68.55% of shares owned by Suning, held through Grand Tower, but also the 31.05% formally held by LionRock Capital of Hong Kong. LionRock is linked to Inter’s ownership chain through the holding company International Sports Capital, which follows Italian law and thus different procedures and timelines.
Upon completion of the process, Oaktree will own 99.6% of Inter’s shares. Notary Carlo Marchetti, currently a member of Inter’s Board of Directors representing the American fund, may take on a more significant role moving forward.
