Rochdale AFC shareholders approve the issue of nearly 400k new shares

Rochdale AFC shareholders gave their approval for the club to issue up to 397,043 new shares

Rochdale AFC shareholders have voted in favour of the club issuing nearly 400,000 new shares at an EGM on Wednesday (6 October).

In a meeting lasting just eight minutes at the Ratcliffe Suite, shareholders gave their approval for the club to issue up to 397,043 new shares for no less than £2 per share.

The vote was almost unanimous with all but one shareholder voting in favour of the proposal, mirroring the Dale Trust ballot which saw 98.6% of its members vote in favour of the motion.

If all the shares approved are issued it would bring the total number of shares allotted to 900,000.

A spokesperson for the Dale Trust said: “This is another vital step towards safeguarding the future of the football club and ensuring that it remains in the hands of people who have the best interests of the football club at heart.”

When he was appointed as chairman of the club in June, Simon Gauge announced that one of the aims of the new board was to call an EGM for a share issue.

Speaking at the time, he said: “We have also made the decision that we will call another EGM to get authorisation for a share issue. This will be quite different to the last set of resolutions brought to the last EGM [in June].”

He added that it would give supporters "the opportunity to purchase shares in the club and cement our place as one of the few fan-owned clubs in the EFL, generating much needed funds."