RANGERS chairman John Bennett is set to hold talks with Club 1872 and will open dialogue with other influential Ibrox stakeholders.
Club 1872 revealed on Monday afternoon that they had increased their shareholding in RIFC plc following a £250,000 purchase from a private individual investor.
That deal has taken the supporter organisation - who are the ninth largest shareholders in Rangers - beyond the five per cent mark once again.
In an announcement that was circulated to members, the group stated that they 'remain in the process of trying to organise a meeting with the RIFC Board' after not being asked to participate in the recent rounds of fundraising at Ibrox.
Bennett was appointed as chairman earlier this month following Douglas Park's decision to step down from the board and he has been in dialogue with Club 1872 in recent weeks in an attempt to arrange a meeting.
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That proposal is still on the table from Bennett as he seeks to constructively engage with a range of stakeholders and a Rangers spokesman said: “The Chairman has been in regular contact since April 14 with Club 1872. Mr Bennett is awaiting a reply to his offer to meet next week”.
Bennett was appointed to the board following regime change in March 2015 and became deputy chairman five years later as Park replaced Dave King at the head of the Ibrox top table.
The businessman has been a hugely significant financial backer of the club for several seasons and currently controls more than five per cent of the shares in RIFC plc.
His rise to chairman means he is now the figurehead of the Ibrox board and two other significant organisations - the Union Bears and the Rangers Supporters Association - have joined forces with Club 1872 to request talks with Bennett regarding a range of issues.
A joint statement read: "The Union Bears, Club 1872 and the Rangers Supporters Association (RSA) have held a series of very constructive meetings over the past few weeks, sharing our experiences and concerns about the direction of the club over the last couple of years.
“We are all agreed on our wish for greater accountability, competence and the transparency from the leadership of the club.
"We would like to welcome John Bennett to his new role as chairman and express our hope that he will engage with supporters and make the required changes to ensure that his publicly articulated vision of a ‘best in class’ Rangers will become a reality.
"It is our shared view that there is a lot of work to be done for that to be the case.
“For our own part, we all stand ready to engage constructively with Mr Bennett and share our perspectives with him. We hope that process will begin very shortly.
"We all want Rangers to thrive and succeed and e hope that constructive, opens and honest dialogue will be a priority for the new chairman.”
