Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter’s firm, TWG Global, has denied allegations of fraud amid reported federal inquiries into private-credit loans involving Walter-linked businesses. The statement also rejected speculation that the Dodgers’ high spending on players is financed by improper lending, saying the club’s payroll is supported by its own revenues; the matter matters because it has fuelled wider scrutiny of the owner and criticism of the team’s spending.

Reports alleged that Walter may need to raise between $16 billion and $20 billion to settle the loans, which reportedly faced questions over disclosure and investor exposure rather than being inherently illegal. TWG said it would co-operate with the US Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission, while maintaining that no one had been harmed; it added that the Dodgers have baseball’s highest revenue, reportedly exceeding $1 billion in a season, with payroll and luxury-tax costs estimated at about 55% of that income.