Despite Inter Milan’s fine 2022/2023 season punctuated by two national cups won (the Coppa against Juventus and the Supercoppa against Fiorentina) and a Champions League final lost against Manchester City, the Milanese club lives for hours dark internally for several years. Blame it on the worrying balance sheets and critical financial management of Chinese president and owner Steven Zhang, who has owned nearly 70% of Inter via Suning Holdings Group since June 2016. If the technical field, provided mainly by the director general Giuseppe Marotta and sporting director Piero Ausilio, is rather a guarantee of competitiveness and success, the entrepreneurial management is very worrying. According to the detailed forecasts of Calcio and Finance, the financial statements of the Nerazzurri will conclude, once again this season, with significant losses, although less compared to 2022. The net result will be weighed down above all by the large expense of interest and financial charges estimated around 50 million euros, linked to the enormous amount of outstanding debt which is around 800 million with a negative net financial position of around 300 million. A situation that worsened with the managerial debacle linked to the sponsor of Digitalbits, which cost the club more than 30 million euros.
As a reminder, rumors of sales have emerged in recent months despite specific denials from Zhang at the end of last season. Announced for sale for several months, Steven Zhang had set the sale price of the Lombard club at 1.2 billion. A starting sum deemed too high, even out of the current market. An American fund was in pole position to buy the 2021 Italian champions. Goldman Sach and Raine Group had even received a mandate from Milan to help the 31-year-old Chinese look for buyers on Wall Street. A news that had been confirmed by the FinancialTimes. No real negotiations had taken place but rumors had also reported two American funds interested and another from the United Arab Emirates in the running. These close ties with several of these American financial institutions, in particular Goldman Sachs, Oaktree Capital Management and Bain Capital, earned Steven Zhang and the company Suning Holdings Group a first lawsuit lost last June against the China Construction Bank Asia Corporation. . As a result, the Chinese bank had requested access to documents from January 1, 2015 and on general situations, as well as potential negotiations for the sale of Inter and all documentation related to the financing operation of the club.
300 million debts and an international lawsuit
In addition to the schedule of friendly matches and the rest of the summer transfer window, this month of July promises to be eventful for the Nerazzurri. The president of Inter will have to respect the calendar of major extra-sporting events to the letter. The China Construction Bank Asia Corporation, on the strength of a favorable judgment from the Hong Kong court, is asking Steven Zhang for the restitution of 300 million euros which have never been paid. A hearing was already scheduled today July 10 but was officially postponed to August 21, during which Zhang should be heard by the judges, to report on his debt situation and the coverage with which he intends to face. to his debts. The son of Chinese home appliance sales tycoon Zhang Jindong did not appear in previous hearings, either personally or through his lawyers. And everything suggests that he will continue to follow this line of conduct in court, according to the Italian daily La Repubblica.
The Chinese bank has filed a lawsuit against Steven Zhang also in New York and Milan, asking Italian and US courts to recognize and enforce Hong Kong’s conviction. The goal is to loot the foreign assets of Steven Zhang, who has also lost a first lawsuit in the United States against the Chinese state bank. In particular, the China Construction Bank Asia Corporation asks the Milan court to declare illegitimate the minutes of the board of directors of Inter in which it is decided that the president will not receive any remuneration. If Zhang did receive a salary, he could apply for its seizure. However, it should be noted that in the history of the Milanese club, no compensation has ever been paid to a president. In this, then, Zhang has done nothing different from those who have preceded him at the head of the Nerazzurri.
For those who have filed a lawsuit, the issue of salary is only a first step. The objective, once recognition of the Hong Kong judgment in Italy is obtained, is to rely on the majority of the shares of Inter, which the Zhang family holds through a Luxembourg company. In addition, the entire share package is pledged to the Oaktree fund, which in 2021 granted the company that controls Inter financing of 275 million euros, maturing in May 2024. It is precisely next spring that a first verdict by civil judge Alima Zama, before whom the trial opened last March, could take place. After three hearings and as many postponements, it is indeed obvious that the decision will take several months to see the light of day. The next Milan hearing, after that of July 12, has been set for September 12.
