Persib FC considers going public

PT Persib Bandung Bermartabat (PBB), the owner of Bandung-based Persib football club, is considering a plan to go public to help boost the club's performance and preserve supporters' loyalty.
PBB director Muhammad Farhan said the company's executives were currently in talks with shareholders to follow up the plan, saying that he hoped to see a final decision within a year.
"We are now studying the request from bobotoh [the local name for die-hard Persib fans] to return the ownership of the club to the public," he said as quoted by tribunnews.com on Tuesday, adding that the PBB management would likely agree to offer up to 45 percent of the company's shares to the public.
Persib is currently owned by one corporate and five individual shareholders.
Farhan said the company would use the funds received from the share sale to develop club infrastructure and hire world-class players. (hwa)