Rangers supporters group slams Duff & Phelps over £3.3m fees

RANGERS fans have criticised accountancy firm Duff & Phelps after it emerged that its fees for handling the club’s finances total £3.3million.

Duff and Phelps were appointed administrators by Rangers on February 14 as it emerged that the club owed around £9million to the taxman since Craig Whyte’s takeover.

The firm negotiated a package of wage cuts and were responsible for the takeover process that eventually led to Charles Green’s Sevco consortium having a bid accepted.

Duff & Phelps’ offer of a company volntary arrangement (CVA) to creditors was rejected by HM Revenue & Customs and the club were forced into liquidation on June 12.

Now it has been reported that Duff & Phelps is charging a total of £3.3million for its services - £3.18million for six months’ work, £104,608 for proposing the CVA and £42,760 prior to administration.

It charged an hourly rate of £383 for a total of 8,300 hours.

Mark Dingwall, a board member of the Rangers Supporters Trust, said Duff & Phelps had not represented good value for creditors.

He told the Herald newspaper: “I think they have been very badly conflicted from the start. I think the job was far too big for them, they had no experience in football and I doubt they will be given work like this in the future simply because of the catastrophic manner they have carried out their tasks.”

Duff & Phelps refutes the accusation that there was a conflict of interest because one of the firm’s partners, David Grier, had advised Whyte during his ill-fated takeover. The firm says it had taken “conflict review procedures” prior to administration.

A spokesman for Duff & Phelps said: “Fees and estimated fees represent standard Duff & Phelps charges. These have been fully transparent and this is now the third creditors’ report in which they have been detailed.”