Birol Nadir and Arsenal shares 04/2005

There has been a recent flurry of share buying activity around Arsenal and it has been revealed that Birol Nadir and his friends and business associates now own about 7 per cent of the club. Nadir is a son of Asil Nadir, the fugitive businessman who fled Britain after the collapse of his Polly Peck business empire. Birol Nadir is a long-term shareholder in the club. He is president of the European arm of Crystalix, an American company that runs outlets in department store selling engraved gift items. He said that he had been getting people to invest in the club because he feels that it is undervalued and claims that Arsenal has the chance to become the number one soccer [sic] club in the world. He sought to play down City rumours that he is planning to launch a takeover bid or that he wants a seat on the board. He argues that if Manchester United has a market value of £703m, Arsenal should be worth a lot more than £236.4m. Directors currently own about 45 per cent of the shares which are traded on Ofex.