What Rob Couhig is doing right now as £25m Reading takeover agreed

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As takeovers go, the stakes could hardly be higher as Reading owner Dai Yongge thrashes out a deal. The Royals’ stadium, its status in the EFL, ands very existence is on the line.

It has been nearly 600 days since Reading, currently occupying the final play-off spot in League One, were made for sale.

The club had been a circus since Yongge bought Reading on a hail Mary on the eve of the Championship play-off final, but the last 600 days have been something else.

There have been what seems like countless false dawns and bizarre details as this takeover saga has played out in public, with buyer after buyer coming and going.

Matters have come to a head with the EFL giving the club until 5 April, later extended to 22 April, to complete a takeover after Dai Yongge was founded in breach of owners’ and directors’ criteria.

Yongge is believed to owe up to £850m in his native China and has been added to the nation’s dishonest debtors list.

Meanwhile, Reading are bleeding cash. In their official accounts for 2022-23, which were filed over a year late in March, the auditors said it’s touch and go as to whether they have enough money to finish 2024-25.

Former Wycombe Wanderers owner Rob Couhig looked like he could be the club’s salvation last summer, with Yongge using the Select Car Leasing Stadium as collateral in the negotiations.

But after those talks collapsed, Couhig’s legal claim over the Select Car Leasing Stadium has complicated matters significantly.

Exclusive talks between Yongge and another would-be buyer, the private equity operator Robert Platek, have now expired.

The exact reason Platek has walked away isn’t known – but take your pick from one of the myriad available.

This week, it has been widely that Couhig has re-emerged as a potential buyer before the 22 April deadline, with the American lawyers in advanced talks with Yongge once more.

It is said that Couhig has agreed to pay a significant portion of the £25m Yongge wants for the club upfront, though a significant portion of that price is likely debt.

The 75-year-old is also believed to be willing to conduct a truncated period of due diligence so as not to fall foul of the EFL’s deadline.

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Rob Couhig places deposit and is given access to Reading’s data room

According to experts canvassed by EFL Analysis, now Couhig has once again been granted exclusivity, he will be given access to what is known as the ‘data room’.

A non-refundable deposit will have been paid to Yongge, a mechanism which is designed to ward off timewasters.

In mergers and acquisitions, the data room used to be a physical space where documents that give a full picture of a business’s operations are stored. Now, it is almost always digital.

This information goes well beyond what a company discloses in its annual accounts. It is a full, granular picture of the club’s payroll, assets, liabilities and more.

For Reading, it might not make pretty reading material for Couhig. This period will also give him the chance to request additional data from the club.

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The future could be bright for Reading

If the deal does go through, things will immediately be looking up for Reading.

The club has been attractive to investors for some time due to its relatively proximity to Heathrow Airport and its marketable brand.

Couhig was generally well though of at Wycombe and will have proof of funds and, as far as the EFL’s owners’ and directors’ test is concerned, is an oven-ready candidate.

Promotion this term will also be less make-or-break once the deal is done, but previous failures mean that it is not a sure thing just yet.