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Singapore - Peter Lim, a sports-loving Singaporean billionaire, on Tuesday announced an increased offer of 360 million pounds in cash for troubled English football club Liverpool.
"I respect and admire Liverpool Football Club, which is steeped in tradition and history," said Lim, 57, a self-made fishmonger's son whose fortune is estimated by US business magazine Forbes at $1.6 billion.
"I am committed to rebuilding the club so that it can soon regain its position at the pinnacle of English and European football, where it truly belongs. This is why I have stepped forward with this offer," he added in a statement.
Lim's offer values the club at 320 million pounds. A further 40 million pounds will be made available to purchase new players.
The package is 20 percent higher than a US rival's proposal of 300 million pounds accepted by the club's management over a similar offer by Lim during an auction that ended last week.
Liverpool chairman Martin Broughton's decision to sell to New England Sports Ventures (NESV), owner of the Boston Red Sox baseball team, is now being contested by Liverpool's current American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett.
A High Court hearing on the case started Tuesday in London shortly after Lim made his bid public.
The new offer is in cash and will remove the entire acquisition debt of 200 million pounds taken on by the existing owners that has cast uncertainty over the club's future, the statement said.
"My offer provides a firm financial platform from which the club can rebuild. Given the manner in which the sale process has been handled, I feel Martin and the Board owe it to me, to the club and to the supporters to consider my offer."
The case being heard in London will hinge on whether Liverpool chairman Martin Broughton had the authority to sell the troubled English giants to NESV against the wishes of its owners.
The boardroom battle has coincided with Liverpool's worst start to a season for nearly 50 years, with the club languishing in the relegation zone and eliminated from the League Cup.
Lim, described by his publicists as a passionate football fan, currently holds the franchise for Manchester United theme restaurants in Asia.
A source close to the tycoon told AFP that if his offer for Liverpool succeeds, Lim will give up the Red Devils restaurant franchise.
Andy Ho, president of the Official Liverpool FC Fan Club which claims 5 000 members, said he was happy with the prospective Singapore link to the team.
"Forty million (pounds) is a lot of money no matter how you look at it. You could get a few good quality payers with the money," he said.
Lim studied commerce, accountancy and finance at the University of Western Australia in Perth, supporting himself as a cab driver, waiter and cook.
He first made a fortune as Singapore's hottest share trader in the 1990s, and made even more money as a private investor who now has interests in agribusiness, fashion, logistics, food and beverages and healthcare.
Lim funds scholarships for bright but needy Singapore schoolchildren and recently gave a $7.7 million grant to the Singapore Olympics Foundation to help promising young athletes, particularly those from poor families, realise their sporting dreams.
"I respect and admire Liverpool Football Club, which is steeped in tradition and history," said Lim, 57, a self-made fishmonger's son whose fortune is estimated by US business magazine Forbes at $1.6 billion.
"I am committed to rebuilding the club so that it can soon regain its position at the pinnacle of English and European football, where it truly belongs. This is why I have stepped forward with this offer," he added in a statement.
Lim's offer values the club at 320 million pounds. A further 40 million pounds will be made available to purchase new players.
The package is 20 percent higher than a US rival's proposal of 300 million pounds accepted by the club's management over a similar offer by Lim during an auction that ended last week.
Liverpool chairman Martin Broughton's decision to sell to New England Sports Ventures (NESV), owner of the Boston Red Sox baseball team, is now being contested by Liverpool's current American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett.
A High Court hearing on the case started Tuesday in London shortly after Lim made his bid public.
The new offer is in cash and will remove the entire acquisition debt of 200 million pounds taken on by the existing owners that has cast uncertainty over the club's future, the statement said.
"My offer provides a firm financial platform from which the club can rebuild. Given the manner in which the sale process has been handled, I feel Martin and the Board owe it to me, to the club and to the supporters to consider my offer."
The case being heard in London will hinge on whether Liverpool chairman Martin Broughton had the authority to sell the troubled English giants to NESV against the wishes of its owners.
The boardroom battle has coincided with Liverpool's worst start to a season for nearly 50 years, with the club languishing in the relegation zone and eliminated from the League Cup.
Lim, described by his publicists as a passionate football fan, currently holds the franchise for Manchester United theme restaurants in Asia.
A source close to the tycoon told AFP that if his offer for Liverpool succeeds, Lim will give up the Red Devils restaurant franchise.
Andy Ho, president of the Official Liverpool FC Fan Club which claims 5 000 members, said he was happy with the prospective Singapore link to the team.
"Forty million (pounds) is a lot of money no matter how you look at it. You could get a few good quality payers with the money," he said.
Lim studied commerce, accountancy and finance at the University of Western Australia in Perth, supporting himself as a cab driver, waiter and cook.
He first made a fortune as Singapore's hottest share trader in the 1990s, and made even more money as a private investor who now has interests in agribusiness, fashion, logistics, food and beverages and healthcare.
Lim funds scholarships for bright but needy Singapore schoolchildren and recently gave a $7.7 million grant to the Singapore Olympics Foundation to help promising young athletes, particularly those from poor families, realise their sporting dreams.
