The trading history on the NEX Exchange has shown some unusual activity regarding a £35,400 stake on two Arsenal shares just before news of Alisher Usmanov’s £1bn bid broke.

  • Usmanov values Arsenal at over £1.5bn
  • Two shares bought for over £35,000 before news of Usmanov’s takeover broke
  • Only seven have been bought in last year

A trade of £17,200 for one Arsenal share was apparently placed at around 3pm before the market closed last Friday, and a second of £18,200 went through an hour later.

These are the first trades in months and considering Usmanov put his bid in not long after, the ‘anonymous’ activity has understandably sparked questions.

Football Economy suggests that someone could have gotten wind of Usmanov’s takeover, in which he valued the club at over £1.5bn, and thought they could cash in on the higher prices.

At the moment, it remains to be seen whether the Russian billionaire will return with a higher bid. Despite claims that Stan Kroenke is ‘wavering’ over the sale of the club, the man himself apparently says he won’t be selling.

Edit: While the press are reporteding that this is ‘unusual activity’, Daily Cannon have been informed otherwise by Arsenal shareholder, Darren.

Darren claims that the sale price of the shares was within the 6% margin other shares, which means there’s no sign of impropriety.

He also pointed out that the reason there haven’t been many Arsenal shares sold is because of lack of availability.