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March 9, 2009
New name for Nets arena? How about "U.S. Taxpayer Bailout for U.K. Bank Center"?
Barclays got a share of U.S. bailout money to AIG last fall at the same time the Brit bank re-affirmed its deal to pay Nets $400 million for its name on Brooklyn arena.
The Smart Asset [Village Voice financial blog]
by Ward Harkavy
While the cloud hanging over the U.S. economy grows bigger and darker, it's comforting to know that precious American tax dollars are flowing to British bank Barclays. Are they helping to prop up Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards, too?
Working both sides of the Atlantic, British behemoth Barclays got sneakily paid off by U.S.-taxpayer-financed bailout funds late last year given to whiny insuror AIG, and now Barclays is negotiating, of course, to get U.K. government help in getting rid of toxic assets.
It turns out that while the U.K. conglomerate was getting a share of the bailout money, it recommitted last November its deal to pay $400 million to the New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets for naming rights to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. "Barclays still loyal to Nets' cause," the Bergen Record trumpeted on November 13:
"Barclays is unwavering in its commitment to the Barclays Center and we are very pleased with our long-term alliance with our great partners, the Nets and Forest City Ratner Companies," Barclays chief administrative officer Gerard LaRocca said in a press release. "We are excited about being part of the continued renaissance of Brooklyn, and we eagerly look forward to opening night at Barclays Center."
(Sidelight: Bank of America, which also got part of the AIG bailout money, last month called off its similar naming-rights deal with the Yankees.)
Whether Bruce Ratner will continue with construction of the Barclays Center may be in question, but at least the foreign bank was able to get U.S. bailout money more or less under the table.
Posted by eric at March 9, 2009 7:32 PM