A total of 6.43 percent of Birmingham International Holdings — the club’s parent company — was sold, raising HK$49 million ($6.3 million), the firm said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange late Wednesday.
The sale saw the overall stake held by the club’s biggest shareholder, Hong Kong-based tycoon Carson Yeung, fall from 24.9 percent to 23.3 percent. The statement said the shares were sold to people “not connected” to the club.
Hong Kong-listed Birmingham International Holdings disclosed in statements to the bourse in March that it has debts amounting to HK$348 million.
Shares in the company were at HK$0.207 in intraday trade Thursday, down 0.95 percent.
Birmingham won the Carling Cup in February, stunning Arsenal 2-1 at Wembley but the club will need to prove its financial stability to play in the Europa League next season.
Yeung last month paid $3.37 million to investment bank Seymour Pierce in London over consultancy fees the bank claimed for advising the tycoon when he first tried to take control of the club nearly three years ago.
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Debt-ridden Birmingham raise $6.3 million