by sandowngull » 07 Aug 2024, 19:02
Midlandgull wrote: 06 Aug 2024, 11:35
I'd like to understand more about the share issue and why it's shares with TUST and not TUFC itself?
It would be also interesting to know what the £100k would be used for.
Hi Midlandgull
As per my earlier post, I am Matt Gorman (the chap that presented on behalf of TUST at the forum). Great questions and I will try and answer these for you if that helps? Apologies, being concise was never my strong point!
Why is the investment in TUST not TUAFC Ltd
As you may be aware, TUST have been working closely with the Bryn Consortium right from the start of their tenure as owners. Indeed, the relationship with certain members commenced well before Bryn were given the keys to the club. The consortium are all fans and ultimately they are keen to build a sustainable football club which in time they see as being potentially "fully owned" by the fans (using a similar model to Exeter City). Given the status of TUST as a Community Benefit Society, the vehicle for ownership is already in place. Therefore it is envisaged by the Club that the Community Share Issue (CSI) will be the first step on the path to building the TUST shareholding towards achieving that end goal.
Whilst there are no immediate future plans for a further fundraising, it is likely there will be such opportunities again down the line. As I alluded to on Monday evening, it could be that TUST look to raise capital and invest into the club for a specific purpose i.e. inject capital into the youth set-up or training facilities (purely by way of an example I might add!!). Ultimately the TUST Board will be guided by its members and will be very mindful of the needs of the club which as we have seen very clearly so far, will no doubt be be very transparent.
Indeed, if the club needed a further capital raise for future financing needs it’s easier to allow TUST to follow its money with a further fund raise / share issue vs consultations with a long tail of minority shareholders. Whilst the club continues to be majority owned by the Consortium, TUST provides an efficient and structured means by which the Consortium can ensure that fans are involved in key decisions versus having to consult with hundreds/thousands of small shareholders.
We understand that not everyone is a member of TUST and for whatever reason, certain people do not want to become a member either because of views they have or indeed because of affordability and that’s naturally a personal decision. However, hopefully the current TUST board are (by way of their actions) demonstrating how important TUST can be to the club as we move forward from here. Indeed, our membership is currently at around 875 members and growing which is excellent. The club are seeing the benefits of this enhanced membership as we work with them on various projects which are involving members as volunteers. This is saving valuable resources which can then be better deployed elsewhere such as on the football pitch which is of course the main attraction for all of us as supporters.
Coming back to the question again, the club are offering heritage protection rights if a certain sum of money is raised and this valuable protection would not be available to individual shareholders. Following on from the previous regime, the ability to secure our tenure as a club at our spiritual home of Plainmoor is a huge thing and this together with other forms of protection will be enshrined within the Articles of Association for all to see, but only if we hit our £100,000 target!
A further seat on the club board is being offered to further enhance the voice of the fans with TUST having the honour and privilege to fulfil this through the ultimate appointment of 2 directors. These places will be for an intial fixed period, but the TUST membership will have the ability to nominate and vote on future directorships. Whilst Nick Brodrick as TUST Chairman will rightfully take the first position, the second directorship will follow a nomination process by TUST members.
Finally, the cost and administration involved with issuing shares to individual shareholders directly by the club under company law would be too expensive and impractical for the club whereas Community shares issued by a Community Benefit Society (TUST) are easier to issue and administer.
Ultimately, I guess the answer to this question is perhaps more a matter for the Club than TUST, i.e. it is the Club's decision to support the CSI rather than offering individuals direct shares in the club.
Certainly, if you or indeed anyone else is looking to invest a significant amount of money then we would be happy to pass you on to the Consortium to discuss this directly.
What is now hopefully obvious to all supporters is that TUFC are once again united and all stakeholders are pulling in the same direction again. Ultimately everybody wants the best for the club and there is no desire to compete against each other which is fantastic and I strongly believe we will all reap the rewards for years to come.
What will the £100k be used for?
Another excellent question..
The Consortium have essentially “wiped the slate clean” by dealing with previous creditors and other liabilities. This has utilised a large element of their capital injection and it is therefore prudent (and indeed baked into the cashflow) to generate additional capital from the CSI to assist with ongoing requirements. So, to be frank the funds will be going straight into the TUAFC Ltd cashflow pot to potentially assist Paul and Neil with the football side of things. It may also be deployed in other areas to further stabilise the club financially moving forward such as investment into the commercial side of the club which in turn will hopefully generate further cashflow and profitability.
From a process perspective, all funds raised from the CSI will be paid to TUST and we will then make payment to the club in exchange for shares that will be issued at a set price (correlated to the value used for the Bryn purchase of shares in the club). The amount paid to the club will be the full amount raised less any direct costs encountered with the share issue.
I hope I have been able to answer your questions clearly enough. If not, then please let us know at
[email protected]
Best Wishes
Matt Gorman
[quote=Midlandgull post_id=285536 time=1722944156 user_id=24035]
I'd like to understand more about the share issue and why it's shares with TUST and not TUFC itself?
It would be also interesting to know what the £100k would be used for.
[/quote]
Hi Midlandgull
As per my earlier post, I am Matt Gorman (the chap that presented on behalf of TUST at the forum). Great questions and I will try and answer these for you if that helps? Apologies, being concise was never my strong point!
[b][u]Why is the investment in TUST not TUAFC Ltd[/u][/b]
As you may be aware, TUST have been working closely with the Bryn Consortium right from the start of their tenure as owners. Indeed, the relationship with certain members commenced well before Bryn were given the keys to the club. The consortium are all fans and ultimately they are keen to build a sustainable football club which in time they see as being potentially "fully owned" by the fans (using a similar model to Exeter City). Given the status of TUST as a Community Benefit Society, the vehicle for ownership is already in place. Therefore it is envisaged by the Club that the Community Share Issue (CSI) will be the first step on the path to building the TUST shareholding towards achieving that end goal.
Whilst there are no immediate future plans for a further fundraising, it is likely there will be such opportunities again down the line. As I alluded to on Monday evening, it could be that TUST look to raise capital and invest into the club for a specific purpose i.e. inject capital into the youth set-up or training facilities (purely by way of an example I might add!!). Ultimately the TUST Board will be guided by its members and will be very mindful of the needs of the club which as we have seen very clearly so far, will no doubt be be very transparent.
Indeed, if the club needed a further capital raise for future financing needs it’s easier to allow TUST to follow its money with a further fund raise / share issue vs consultations with a long tail of minority shareholders. Whilst the club continues to be majority owned by the Consortium, TUST provides an efficient and structured means by which the Consortium can ensure that fans are involved in key decisions versus having to consult with hundreds/thousands of small shareholders.
We understand that not everyone is a member of TUST and for whatever reason, certain people do not want to become a member either because of views they have or indeed because of affordability and that’s naturally a personal decision. However, hopefully the current TUST board are (by way of their actions) demonstrating how important TUST can be to the club as we move forward from here. Indeed, our membership is currently at around 875 members and growing which is excellent. The club are seeing the benefits of this enhanced membership as we work with them on various projects which are involving members as volunteers. This is saving valuable resources which can then be better deployed elsewhere such as on the football pitch which is of course the main attraction for all of us as supporters.
Coming back to the question again, the club are offering heritage protection rights if a certain sum of money is raised and this valuable protection would not be available to individual shareholders. Following on from the previous regime, the ability to secure our tenure as a club at our spiritual home of Plainmoor is a huge thing and this together with other forms of protection will be enshrined within the Articles of Association for all to see, but only if we hit our £100,000 target!
A further seat on the club board is being offered to further enhance the voice of the fans with TUST having the honour and privilege to fulfil this through the ultimate appointment of 2 directors. These places will be for an intial fixed period, but the TUST membership will have the ability to nominate and vote on future directorships. Whilst Nick Brodrick as TUST Chairman will rightfully take the first position, the second directorship will follow a nomination process by TUST members.
Finally, the cost and administration involved with issuing shares to individual shareholders directly by the club under company law would be too expensive and impractical for the club whereas Community shares issued by a Community Benefit Society (TUST) are easier to issue and administer.
Ultimately, I guess the answer to this question is perhaps more a matter for the Club than TUST, i.e. it is the Club's decision to support the CSI rather than offering individuals direct shares in the club.
Certainly, if you or indeed anyone else is looking to invest a significant amount of money then we would be happy to pass you on to the Consortium to discuss this directly.
What is now hopefully obvious to all supporters is that TUFC are once again united and all stakeholders are pulling in the same direction again. Ultimately everybody wants the best for the club and there is no desire to compete against each other which is fantastic and I strongly believe we will all reap the rewards for years to come.
[b][u]What will the £100k be used for?[/u][/b]
Another excellent question..
The Consortium have essentially “wiped the slate clean” by dealing with previous creditors and other liabilities. This has utilised a large element of their capital injection and it is therefore prudent (and indeed baked into the cashflow) to generate additional capital from the CSI to assist with ongoing requirements. So, to be frank the funds will be going straight into the TUAFC Ltd cashflow pot to potentially assist Paul and Neil with the football side of things. It may also be deployed in other areas to further stabilise the club financially moving forward such as investment into the commercial side of the club which in turn will hopefully generate further cashflow and profitability.
From a process perspective, all funds raised from the CSI will be paid to TUST and we will then make payment to the club in exchange for shares that will be issued at a set price (correlated to the value used for the Bryn purchase of shares in the club). The amount paid to the club will be the full amount raised less any direct costs encountered with the share issue.
I hope I have been able to answer your questions clearly enough. If not, then please let us know at
[email protected]Best Wishes
Matt Gorman
