A consortium led by Maxi Lopez and Paul Richardson are attempting a takeover of Birmingham City.

The pair first came forward as potential buyers in the middle of July, supplanting Laurence Bassini as the likely new owner of the Blues.

Bassini had failed to conclude his agreement to buy the club and lost exclusivity rights as a result.

In the time since Lopez and Richardson stepped forward, the consortium has looked to put a big down payment at the start of August.

A £1.5 million deposit was paid by the pair in July, which was received by the Championship side’s largest shareholder Vong Pech.

Taking control of the businessman’s 21.64 per cent stake is the first step in the process of buying the club.

That plan is set to take up to two years at a cost of £36.5 million.

Following that step, the consortium conducted their due diligence on manager John Eustace, who was appointed earlier this summer as a replacement for Lee Bowyer.

The process of buying the club is set to involve two stages, with two payments over the course of that period.

The first will total £26.5 million and the second stage will be worth £10 million.

A further £10 million bonus will be paid if Birmingham reach the Premier League by 2026.

But the takeover bid hit a snag at the start of August when it emerged that Richardson and Lopez did not possess enough money to complete the deal, despite their exclusivity to negotiate their bid.

This meant that additional funding needed to be secured.

 

 

A July 31 deadline was missed to provide proof of funds, with the next deadline set for the middle of August.

Earlier this week, a further update emerged that claimed the current investigation into the club’s present owners will not impact any potential sale of Birmingham.

The EFL is currently investigating the role played by Cambodian diplomat Wang Yaohui and whether the organisation’s fit and proper test for owners has been complied with.

But the good news for the second tier side is that this inquiry will not have an impact on the takeover bid hanging over the club.