Sir Jim Ratcliffe formally extends deadline of offer acceptance as ratification delay continues – Man United News And Transfer News

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Nothing is ever simple and straightforward with Manchester United.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s stake in Manchester United was confirmed by the club more than a month ago but he is yet to be ratified.

That means he can’t start working at the club in an official capacity and that delay is set to be extended for a while longer.

The club has posted the latest SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) filings on the website which confirms that fact.

In the document, it is made clear that Sir Jim Ratcliffe has extended his deadline for acceptance of the offer.

Earlier, it was scheduled to expire at one minute after 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on February 13, 2024.

Clearly, the ratification from the league, as well as the completion of a deal with Class A shareholders, wasn’t going to be confirmed by then.

Taking this into account, the new deadline has been set at one minute after 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on February 16, 2024.

Even this new deadline is fluid and is subject to extended or earlier termination depending upon the developments around the deal.

The delay is also partly down to extra information being asked about Sir Jim’s wealth by shareholders and needed to be answered, a usual process for a publicly listed company.

It is worth noting that Glazers own all the Class B shares and the transfer of those was always going to be straightforward since they are the ones who initiated the strategic review process.

However, buying out Class A shareholders, ones with no voting power and buying shares on the New York Stock Exchange, was going to take time due to the legalities involved with United being a publicly listed company.

Add to that the time taken by the Premier League to ratify the deal- they can’t do it till Ratcliffe’s acquisition under SEC is complete, further extensions to the deadline can’t be ruled out.

It is worth stressing that this is still only a formality and there are no hitches expected in the completion of the deal.