July 26 (Reuters) - Coast Capital fund on Monday demanded the resignation of FirstGroup’s chief executive and two board members in the wake of a contentious asset sale, deepening a rift between the British transport company and its biggest shareholder. New York-based Coast Capital, which owns roughly 15% in FirstGroup, has been opposing the sale of the company’s U.S.-based FirstStudent and FirstTransit businesses to Swedish group EQT, arguing the price was too low. The deal closed on July 21 after 61.3% of investors at a meeting in May voted in favour of the sale. Last week, FirstGroup boosted shareholder returns by 37% to 500 million pounds. Coast Capital founding partner James Rasteh told Reuters his firm presented alternate deal proposals to FirstGroup that Coast believed would provide superior value to shareholders, but that FirstGroup did not engage with them. A representative for FTSE 250-listed FirstGroup did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Coast’s proposals included a sale-and-leaseback transaction and possible deals with a special acquisition vehicle, it said. “Given the board’s decision to pursue a different path, Coast Capital and fellow shareholders request that (FirstGroup CEO Matthew) Gregory resign,” Coast said in a statement seen by Reuters. It also asked for the resignation of board members Julia Steyn and Warwick Brady. (Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru Editing by Tomasz Janowski) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.