West Brom owner Jeremy Peace abruptly cut off takeover talks with the Chinese consortium keen on the club after they were hit by a dramatic stock market dip.

Peace, who owns 88 per cent of the Baggies, had agreed a bumper deal worth more than £150million with the prospective buyers from China.

He granted them exclusivity early this month to complete their buy-out of The Hawthorns outfit before the season starts on August 8.

But Peace ended that agreement on Friday, and suspended negotiations with the group.

As Mirror Sport understands, the parties were unable to agree on a payment schedule for the deal, with Peace insisting on the full amount before completion.

But Chinese investors have been hit by a roller-coaster on their share market with stocks dipping more than 30 per cent in three weeks, wiping out US $3trillion of market value.

Peace said: “I entered into an exclusivity arrangement in good faith after agreeing terms for the sale but it is now clear to me that this potential purchaser is unable to fulfil the terms of that agreement at this time.”

The deal may yet be revived if a compromise can be reached.