FRANKFURT (Reuters) - A minnow of English football, Stevenage FC, is an unlikely candidate to be at the forefront of financial innovation in the game. Yet it has become the first football club in the world to sell bonds directly to its fans online via crowdfunding, according to the organisers of the deal. Stevenage, in England's fourth division, raised 600,000 pounds in September via a five-year bond to rebuild a stand in its stadium. The figures at stake may be small so far but Vialli said he and his partners were aiming higher. Finbarr O'Connell of accountancy firm Smith & Williamson, who helped now dissolved Formula 1 team Caterham raise donations in 2014, said selling subordinated debt to fans took crowdfunding too far.

Source: The Star November 21, 2017 11:26 UTC