Ticketus 'may go after' Craig Whyte to get its money

Ticketus has said it may go after Rangers owner Craig Whyte for its money if American businessman Bill Miller succeeds in his bid to take over the club.

Mr Whyte struck a £25.3m deal with the ticketing agency for just over 100,000 Ibrox season tickets until 2015. The Rangers owner earlier admitted using £18m of that money to wipe out the club’s debt with Lloyds Banking Group, allowing him to complete his takeover last year.

Earlier this month, Rangers administrators Duff and Phelps revealed the club owe Ticketus the money, meaning it would become one of the largest creditors of the Ibrox club if Mr Miller’s bid is successful. The administrators estimated that should the Ticketus contract be breached, the company would be owed £26.7m.

If Mr Miller takes over the club he will tear up the season ticket deal and attempt to secure a CVA (company voluntary agreement). The London company has now confirmed it may pursue Mr Whyte if this happens to get the remaining cash.

A Ticketus spokesman told STV News: "We (the Blue Knights) still hope to be the preferred bidder. Talks are ongoing. We understand the time pressures, but this will take as long as it takes.

"If Bill Miller’s bid was a success, we would need to look at all the options for the best return for our investors. Part of that would be to look at the original contract with Craig Whyte, where he gave personal guarantees."

In February, Mr Whyte said he was “personally on the line” over the deal with Ticketus.

He added: "The only person at risk from the deal is me personally because I gave Ticketus personal and corporate guarantees underwriting their investment; the club and the fans are fully protected. In terms of exposure, I am personally on the line for £27.5m in guarantees and cash."

On Friday, when revealing the details of his bid for the club, Mr Miller said he has "refused to entertain offers from Ticketus or engage with discussion with Craig Whyte".

He added: "It is difficult for me to see how any parties who were present when this awful situation was created can be a legitimate part of the solution."

Ticketus is in discussions with the Blue Knights consortium led by former Rangers director Paul Murray. Mr Miller’s bid and the Blue Knights are the two groups currently in discussion with Duff and Phelps about taking over Rangers.

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