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STRATEGIC INVESTMENT

GFH Capital takes over UK football club

Manama, December 22, 2012

GFH Capital, a unit of Bahraini investment firm Gulf Finance House (GFH), has become the new owner of Britain's Leeds United Football Club, following the completion of the transaction this week. 

The Dubai-based bank finalised the deal following an initial 33 per cent investment on November 21. With this, GFH Capital managing director Hisham Alrayes and Salem Patel will now join the club's board of directors in the coming weeks alongside company’s deputy CEO David Haigh who took up the position earlier this month.
 
Announcing this at a press conference, Hisham Alrayes said, “We are extremely pleased to have completed this transaction and believe we will make this a very successful investment for GFH Capital and our investors. This transaction is different to our normal transactions and shows that GFH Capital is still a pioneer in investments.” 
 
Commenting on the takeover, Salem Patel said: “We are looking forward to a bright future and we regard this is a fresh start for the football club that we hope will make the fans happy, both old and new. From a business point of view this is an exciting investment and also an exciting opportunity for GFH Capital and we are looking forward to marching on together.”
 
Acknowledging the backing of Leeds United fans during the takeover, David Haigh said: “We are delighted but also honoured and proud to be the new owners of Leeds United Football Club. Over the past few months we have received more than 4,000 emails of support and have been overwhelmed by the positive reaction of fans during the process.
 
“We see this as a huge opportunity to revive the fortunes of Leeds United both on and off the pitch.  The atmosphere on Wednesday night against Chelsea was sensational and we look forward to bringing more of the same to Elland Road in the future,” he added.
 
GFH Capital, formerly known as G Capital, is a Dubai based investment bank and fund manager, providing capital and strategic support for growth companies.
 
With a 10-year track record of top-performing investments and fund management, G Capital  was one of the region’s longest-established private equity firms and one of the first to be licensed by the Dubai Financial Services Authority.-TradeArabia News Service



Tags: Bahrain | Dubai | UK | Football | Club | Leeds | GFH Capital |

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