Cinema-Blend-whereiszemoola

On 31 July 2008, I wrote about Axis Inc. The stock was trading at 2.00 on 11 July 2008. By 30 Jul 2008, the stock price collapsed to 35 sen!



After the plunge, when queried, Axis announced that its autditors had unresolved issues A quick examination of Axis Inc's quarterly earnings would have shown that its receivables ballooned.



More details were explained in the posting A Deeper Look At Axis Inc

On 31 Jul 2008, the following statement stood out in Axis announcement.

• The external auditor, Messrs Horwath are unable to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence and explanations to ascertain the following:- (b) the recoverability of the outstanding balances due from the Contract Manufacturers (net of the settlement subsequent to 31 March 2008) in relation to the trade receivables and advances)

Receivables had ballooned and the external auditors states that they are unable to obtain sufficient audit data!

More drama unfolded a few days later. On 3 Aug 2008. claimed it might have to write off a whopping 161 million from its accounts!

The following was taken from a Business Times article .http://whereiszemoola.blogspot.com/2008/08/update-on-axis-inc.html

• The company said its external auditor, Messrs Horwath, was not able to obtain sufficient evidence and explanation to verify three issues.
  
  One is an amount of RM105 million due from contract manufacturers, which is part of other receivables as at March 31 2008.
  
  This is a big jump from RM11 million in the previous financial year. Subsequent to the balance sheet date, RM20 million has been settled by the contract manufacturers.
  
  Secondly, the contract manufacturers also owed the group RM28 million for sales of fabrics by the group to the contract manufacturers.
  
  Finally, prepayments of RM32 million were made to certain suppliers for the supply of embroidery services, purchase of fabrics and accessories, from which only RM11 million of these services and goods were received by the group.
  
  The balance (of goods and services) is expected to be settled by the end of September 2008.
  
  The contract manufacturers are LA (Cambodia) Garment Pte Ltd, Vivatino Design (Cambodia) Pte Ltd and United Garment (Vietnam) Co Ltd.
  
  These manufacturers are in a strategic alliance agreement with a subsidiary of Axis, where the manufacturers receive a 25 per cent advance payment of the value of a confirmed order for the cutting and sewing of the garments.
  
  Since Messrs Horwath was unable to form an audit opinion, Axis intends to carry out a special audit. It told Bursa Malaysia on Thursday that the company can only say how long it needs to settle the audit issues once the board appoints an independent auditor for the special audit.

I had almost forgotten all about Axis Inc until 2010. On July 2010, Axis Inc Lodges Police Report!!

Yes more drama!

A police report was made because documents and records belonging to Axis Inc went missing!!!

• KUALA LUMPUR: AXIS INCORPORATION BHD 's board of directors has lodged a police report over several official documents and records belonging to Axis and its units which have gone missing.
  
  It said on Friday, June 11 that it had on Wednesday lodged the report over the missing records of the company and its units Asiapin Sdn Bhd, Chongee Enterprises Sdn Bhd and GBC Marketing Pte Ltd from 2004 to 2008 at the offices in Johor Baru, Tangkak and in Singapore.
  
  The missing records included documents in relation to the purchase of machinery sent to contract manufacturers in Cambodia and/or Vietnam; bank statements and cheque butts; payment vouchers and supporting documents for payments made to the contract manufacturers in Cambodia.
  
  Also missing were documents, letters, e-mails and correspondences between Axis group and the contract manufacturers; documents in relation to the orders placed with the contract manufacturers by buyers; documents of raw materials bought for the contract manufacturers (ncluding purchase orders and delivery orders).
  
  The report also claimed that documents on the account of monies received from the Bumiputera issue in 2004 and the sale of Ganad assets in 2007-2008 were missing.
  
  "As a result of the above missing records, Axis Group of companies in 2009 had to write off substantial amount of its assets and receivables due to the lack of documentary support of these assets and receivables," it said. The company said the present Axis Board was unable to answer certain queries posed by Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd.
  
  

A month later, I wrote the following: Stock Manipulation On Axis Inc: Dealer Charged

Totally unreal!

We had accounting issues, police report, missing documents and now stock manipulation! 

Let me reproduce that posting here once again. On the Edge Financial Daily Dealer’s rep sanctioned for false trading, market manipulation

• Dealer’s rep sanctioned for false trading, market manipulation
  Written by Loong Tse Min
  Friday, 09 July 2010 11:06
  
  KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd has publicly reprimanded and fined a commissioned dealer’s representative (CDR) of Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd RM100,000 for false trading and market manipulation in the trading of Axis Incorporated Bhd shares.
  
  In a statement yesterday, Bursa Securities said it ordered that Lee Beng Huat be struck off the register, if he was still a registered person of the exchange.
  
  The exchange said Lee had carried out false trading and market manipulation involving about 41 million Axis shares, out of the market turnover of 104 million Axis shares, for 87 trading days in 2006 and 2007.
  
  It said during that period, Lee had dealt in Axis shares mainly through the accounts of 10 clients. “He had entered buy and sell orders which were manipulative in nature and which had led to false or misleading appearance of active trading in, or market for, Axis shares and tantamount to stock market manipulations,” Bursa Securities said, adding that Lee had breached trading rules.
  
  It said the dealing in Axis shares by Lee via the 10 accounts, which were the top buyers and sellers during the period, had several characteristics:
  
  1. Entry of orders which were several bids lower than the last done price with no real intention to have the buy orders matched.
  
  2. Lee also engaged in order splitting, entering a series of buy orders in succession through any one of the 10 accounts with the same price. These buy orders gave rise to and created an impression of continuous demand for Axis shares which led to false or misleading appearance of active demand/market for Axis shares.
  
  3. The buy and sell orders executed in the 10 accounts:
  
  • had cross-trades which were matched among each other for about 12 million units of Axis shares involving Lee as their common CDR;
  • resulted in the buy and sell transactions of Axis shares in the 10 accounts without any change to the beneficial ownership of Axis shares (NCBO trades) and during the relevant period, there were 65 NCBO trades involving 385,800 units of Axis shares;
  • were frequently matched with the corresponding orders keyed in by another CDR from another broker which indicated that there were some form of pre-arrangements for these trades to be matched;
  • resulted in trades which were rolled over periodically with the same or almost the same block of Axis shares which gave rise to the manipulative trading activities; and
  • had trades which were subsequently amended to other clients’ accounts resulting in a change of the original party to the contract which is not permitted.
  
  Bursa Securities said Lee, by engaging in the manipulations, managed to sell about 72% of the sell orders (40.98 million out of 56.67 million units of sell orders entered for the 10 accounts) and bought about 55% of the buy orders (41.6 million out of 76.14 million units of the 10 accounts’ buy orders).
  
  It said the higher volume and percentage of the buy orders, which were subsequently cancelled and/or lapsed due to the orders being lower than the last done price resulting in lower percentage of buy orders matched, gave an impression of and created an inflated demand for Axis shares.
  
  This, it said, led to a misleading appearance of an active market for Axis shares.
  
  Bursa Securities said Lee had failed to take heed of the concerns raised by the exchange on his irregular trading activities in Axis shares in the 10 accounts but had continued to trade in the irregular and manipulative manner.
  
  This article appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, July 9, 2010.

Hmm... as stated in the article

"Lee had carried out false trading and market manipulation involving about 41 million Axis shares, out of the market turnover of 104 million Axis shares, for 87 trading days in 2006 and 2007. ". 

Here is the chart of Axis between 2006 and 2007... yeah... I can see the massive volume...



And what's interesting is what happened after 2008... here's the chart from 1 Jan 2008 to May 2009.




I wonder who were the big sellers were when the shares plunged in 2008. :P

Ok it's not very clear (LOL! yeah.. what's new! :P ) ... anyway, remember the posting Axis Inc Lodges Police Report!? I had an Axis chart posted?

Let me post an ammended chart now. :P ( I have now crossed out 2007 stock bumper year and changed it to 2007 Stock Manipulation time! :P )



Now see the bottom arrow on the volume...

Can you see what it suggests? Can you?

Anyway.... I am glad that the dealer was caught but... I am wondering... is the dealer the chief 'tukang masak'? (do check out some of the comments posted http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=17708300&postID=6931647163956148008 )

Let me repeat the this one sentence: the dealer that was charged, was said to "carried out false trading and market manipulation involving about 41 million Axis shares, out of the market turnover of 104 million Axis shares, for 87 trading days in 2006 and 2007."

Think about it...
Think about the SIZE of the manipulation.
Think about the SIZE of missing accounts.

On  today's Sun Daily:3 Axis ex-directors charged with fraud

• 3 Axis ex-directors charged with fraud
  Posted on 22 March 2013 - 05:40am
  PETALING JAYA (March 22, 2013):
  
  The Securities Commission (SC) has charged three former directors of garment manufacturer, Axis Incorporation Bhd for providing false information to Bursa Malaysia between 2006 and 2008.
  
  Koh Tee Jin, Saipuddin Lim and Lee Han Boon were each charged with five counts of furnishing false statements relating to the revenue of Axis to Bursa.
  
  If convicted, the three ex-directors will be liable to a fine not exceeding RM3 million or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years for each charge or both.
  
  In a statement yesterday, the SC said the charges were in relation to false statements contained in Axis' four quarterly reports for the financial year 2007 and the quarter ended March 31, 2008.
  
  Koh, 47, Saipuddin, 54, and Lee, 32, were each granted bail of RM100,000 with two sureties by the Sessions Court and were required to surrender their passports to the court. The matter has been fixed for case management on May 21, 2013.
  
  Axis was delisted from Bursa in November 2010.
  
  "We will continue to bring enforcement actions to ensure accurate and timely disclosure of financial information by listed companies as this is an important aspect in upholding integrity and investor confidence in the capital market," said the SC.

Fine of 3 million and a jail term not exceeding 10 years for each charge or both?

Is it enough?

SOCIALISM
You have 2 cows.
You give one to your neighbour

COMMUNISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and gives you some milk

FASCISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and sells you some milk

NAZISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and shoots you

BUREAUCRATISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and then
throws the milk away

TRADITIONAL CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell one and buy a bull.
Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows.
You sell them and retire on the income

ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND (VENTURE) CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a debt/equity swap with an associated general offer so that you get all four cows back, with a tax exemptionfor five cows.
The milk rights of the six cows are transferred via an intermediary to a Cayman Island Company secretly owned by the majority shareholder who sells the rights to all seven cows back to your listed company.
The annual report says the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more. You sell one cow to buy a new president of the United States , leaving you with nine cows. No balance sheet provided with the release.
The public then buys your bull.

SURREALISM
You have two giraffes.
The government requires you to take harmonica lessons.

AN AMERICAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows.
Later, you hire a consultant to analyse why the cow has dropped dead.

A GREEK CORPORATION
You have two cows. You borrow lots of euros to build barns, milking sheds, hay stores, feed sheds, dairies, cold stores, abattoir, cheese unit and packing sheds.
You still only have two cows.

A FRENCH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You go on strike, organise a riot, and block the roads, because you want three cows.

A JAPANESE CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You redesign them so they are one-tenth the size of an ordinary cow and produce twenty times the milk.
You then create a clever cow cartoon image called a Cowkimona and market it worldwide.

AN ITALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows, but you don't know where they are.
You decide to have lunch.

A SWISS CORPORATION
You have 5000 cows. None of them belong to you.
You charge the owners for storing them.

A CHINESE CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You have 300 people milking them.
You claim that you have full employment, and high bovine productivity.
You arrest the newsman who reported the real situation.

AN INDIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You worship them.

A BRITISH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Both are mad.

AN IRAQI CORPORATION
Everyone thinks you have lots of cows.
You tell them that you have none.
No-one believes you, so they bomb the ** out of you and invade your country.
You still have no cows, but at least you are now a Democracy.

AN AUSTRALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Business seems pretty good.
You close the office and go for a few beers to celebrate.

A NEW ZEALAND CORPORATION
You have two cows.
The one on the left looks very attractive...

Published on Star Business:

• Thursday March 21, 2013
  Asia can absorb more aircraft, says AirAsia chief Tony Fernandes
  
  HONG KONG: Asia will be able to take in more aircraft as economic growth and a population of more than 3 billion people will sustain travel demand, said AirAsia Bhd group chief executive officer of AirAsia Tan Sri Tony Fernandes.
  
  “There are 3 billion people in Asia, there are 300 million people in America. America has about three times more planes right now than Asia,” Fernandes said in a Bloomberg Television interview at the Credit Suisse Asian Investment conference in Hong Kong yesterday. “So it can take a lot of planes.”
  
  The comments come after Indonesian budget carrier PT Lion Mentari Airlines ordered 234 aircraft from Airbus SAS this week its second commitment to purchase more than 200 planes in two years stoking concerns of overcapacity in Asia. More than a dozen budget airlines began operations in Asia-Pacific in the past 15 years as economic growth in China, India and South-East Asia enables more people to fly for the first time.
  
  The growing population in Asia was expected to help fill the planes, said Fernandes, whose AirAsia group expected to carry 43 million passengers this year. Eleven years ago, the airline carried 200,000 passengers, he said.
  
  “I wouldn't say there are too many planes in Asia,” Fernandes said. “We have 500 planes and we fly in six countries. Lion Air is in Indonesia and a hybrid in Malaysia. Asia can take the planes they have and we have.”
  
  Discount carriers have secured about a quarter of the region's air travel market in the past decade. The region will account for 33% of global passengers in 2016, according to the International Air Transport Association, and HSBC Holdings Plc has said four out of five airports in Asia are operating at or above their designated capacity.
  
  AirAsia has grown into Asia's biggest discount airline since its takeover by Tony Fernandes and partners in 2001. The carrier has set up ventures in the Philippines, Japan, Thailand, India and Indonesia.
  
  In 2011, AirAsia ordered 200 Airbus A320neo aircraft valued at US$18bil (RM56.2bil) in the biggest order for the planemaker.
  
  Lion Air, which serves more than 36 destinations, is establishing a low-cost carrier in Malaysia to challenge AirAsia, Airbus's biggest A320 customer. Low-cost carriers are increasing their fleet as air travel is expected to grow more than 6.4% annually through 2031.
  
  Lion Air already has 700 planes on order and expects to have ordered 1,000 planes within “two to three years,” president Rusdi Kirana said on March 18. The Indonesian carrier ordered 230 Boeing Co 737 planes last year.
  
  AirAsia planned to pick an engine for the 100 A320 planes it ordered from Airbus by April 18, Fernandes said. - Bloomberg

 Comments: Just for the record of what's being said.

Posted on Star Business: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2013/3/18/business/12851784&sec=business

• Monday March 18, 2013
  Listed firms told to be transparent to investors
  
  KUALA LUMPUR: Companies listed on Bursa Malaysia need to be transparent in providing information to the investor community, said Bravemarket Inc managing director Dr B.M. Marcello Maestro.
  
  He said he had been talking to some of the local companies and found them undervalued because of their lack of transparency.
  
  
  “You need to communicate with the investors by giving them clear information about your company’s growth, earnings and revenues.
  
  “Most of the companies have knowledge and future plans about their company but they are not putting that in their website which makes them look unattractive to investors’ eyes,” he told Bernama.
  
  Maestro urged the companies to inform the investor community about their growth plans – where they are going, and how and when they are going to get there – because investors are interested in the future and not in the past.
  
  “Clarity creates confidence. If you are clear about your company, then you will have investors coming in for you, and once they are confident about your company then they will keep on investing for a long time.
  
  “It doesn’t matter if your past performance is poor, you need to explain why and how you are going to overcome that,” he said.
  
  Maestro said a company’s share prices were an indication of how investors were valuing its assets.
  
  “Once the share prices go up, its market cap will follow and the company can have lower funding.
  
  “With lower funding, you can expand more because your share prices are higher, and you could also improve the balance sheet,” he added.
  
  Bravemarket, a US-based firm servicing financial institutions, businesses and governments, has engaged government agencies to select the best local small and medium enterprises for inclusion in the Bravemarket Asia Investment Ready 500. — Bernama

My comments: I fully agree that companies are going to be undervalued when the transparency is lacking.

When a company is not transparent, it is not telling the investors what is happening within the company. And I cannot understand for the life of me, why can't the owners and management understand the importance of transparency. Is transparency not important? Are the owners and management so arrogant that they feel that the minority shareholders are not important? Don't they understand that a minority shareholder, is a shareholder and shareholders are but their business partners? So why wants to be their business partner when they have are not giving access to information that will help them understand the business they are investing?

Yes, who wants to buy your company share?

Like this also cannot understand???

Think about it.

A prospective investor or even fund manager for the matter of fact, sees this company. Earnings is great. Dividends paid is not bad too. But sadly, before they could invest, they see this company embarking on multi million dollar project. The information given by the company is hazy, leaving the prospective investors utterly dumbfounded on what is happening, which gives them no choice but to avoid the company.

Why risk investing their money, when they have no idea what is happening exactly with the lack of transparency?

When there is lack of information and clarity, who can the investors trust the company?

Or as they say, who wants to invest, to be a business partner, of a business they cannot trust?

Is this all too difficult for the owners/management to understand???

For example, blogger M.A. Wind has written a lot on this stock called  Protasco and its lack of transparency when it announced a 170 million purchase proposal. As mentioned by M.A. Wind, Protasco is a listed company with a otherwise decent track record and pays a quite good dividend.

Do read the following posting:Protasco's Puzzling Purchase

Some of the issues highlighted.

• PT ASI is only a few months old: "PT ASI was incorporated in Indonesia on 6 September 2012 as a private limited company".
• PT ASI only has one director who hardly owns any shares. No background of this director is given.
• The vendor is 99% owned by Anglo Slavic Petrogas Ltd, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands, no background is given, a search on the internet returns nothing; who is behind this company, what is their track record?
• The company structure of PT ASI owning part of PT FAS owning PT Haseba is rather artificial, why is such a difficult construction chosen?
• Who are the minority shareholders of PT FAS and PT Haseba?
• On the signing of the S&P, Protasco will pay RM 50 million cash, why so much? This is about 30% of the total amount, much higher than normal in comparable deals.
• On November 1, 2012 PT ASI signed a S&P agreement to buy an additional 46% of PT FAS. What was the price paid for that stake? Why does Protasco not wait until this deal is panned out?
• a thorough reasoning should be given: where is the profit guarantee based on? It is definitely not based on the profit from PT Haseba, its results are poor, its revenue in 2011 is even zero:

 Do read Wind's other postings:

• Protasco, where is the transparency?
• Protasco, BFM interview

Astro announced its earnings yesterday.

These are the figures posted by Dow Jones.

The net profit dropped a lot compared to last fiscal year.

The EdgeMalaysia carried the following news.

• Astro Q4 profit down 47% to RM83m
  Business & Markets 2013
  Written by Shalini Kumar of theedgemalaysia.com  
  Thursday, 14 March 2013 18:43
  
  KUALA LUMPUR (Mar 14): Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd recorded a net profit of RM83.2 million for its fourth quarter ended Jan 31, 2013, a 47% fall from the RM157 million it posted in the last corresponding quarter.
  
  Its quarterly revenue came in at RM1.1 billion, a slight increase over the RM1 billion it brought in last year.
  
  “The decrease in net profit is mainly due to a reduction in interest income of RM41.4 million as well as higher depreciation of RM57.5 million compared with the corresponding quarter, which resulted in lower tax expenses by RM22.3 million,” Astro said in its explanatory notes accompanying its results.
  
  For its full year to January 2013, Astro recorded a net profit of RM418 million, down 33.5% from the RM629 million it saw last year.
  
  But its 2013 revenue came in at RM4.3 billion, up by 13.2% compared to 2012’s RM3.8 billion.
  
  In a statement released to Bursa Malaysia today, Astro’s CEO Datuk Rohana Rozhan said: “Astro continues to execute strongly on its growth strategy, delivering double-digit revenue growth of 10% to RM4.3 billion in FY13.
  
  “This is as a result of new customers and good take-up of value added products and services which has contributed to the ARPU growth of 5% from RM89 to RM93.”
  
  The group has also proposed a final dividend of 1 sen per share, which is subject to shareholder’s approval.
  
  Tun Zaki Azmi, Chairman of Astro said, “Our good financial results are a reflection of the achievement of challenging targets, generating strong cash flows from operating activities.
  
  “We therefore declare a second interim single-tier dividend of 1.5 sen per share and propose a final dividend of 1.0 sen per share subject to shareholders’ approval, giving a total dividend of 4.0 sen per share since listing in October last year.”
  
  Looking forward, Rozhan added the group was now aiming to convert the rest of its residential customers to the Astro B.yond platform by the end of January 2014.
  
  “We have momentum in adding both new Pay TV and Njoi customers, and will continue to build on our 52% household penetration rate, which in turn will make Astro more attractive to media buyers,” she added.
  
  “With Astro On-The-Go, we are now bringing Astro services to customers and non-customers in Malaysia, as well as the introduction of the service beyond Malaysia, expanding our footprint beyond our traditional customers of households to individuals in Malaysia and abroad.”
  
  “We will continue to strengthen our IP assets in content, including on-demand and prepaid offerings to remain our customers’ content provider of choice,” she said.

 I was puzzled by the following statement.

• “Our good financial results are a reflection of the achievement of challenging targets, generating strong cash flows from operating activities.

Net profit dropped 47%!

This is considered good?

And I was more amused by today's headlines on Business Times.

Since the net profit dropped by 47%, Business Times decided to focus on REVENUE!

Duh!

• Astro: Double-digit revenue rise
  
  By Cheryl Yvonne Achu Published: 2013/03/15
  
  STRONG STRATEGY: Astro credits new customers, good take-up of value-added products
  
  ASTRO Malaysia Holdings Bhd's revenue rose 10 per cent to RM4.3 billion in the financial year ended January 31 2013, driven by new customers and good take-up of value-added products and services.
  
  However, net profit was down 33.5 per cent to RM418 million from RM629 million a year ago.
  
  The group has declared a second interim dividend of 1.5 sen per 10 sen share, payable on April 18, and proposed a final dividend of one sen per 10 sen share.
  
  Chief executive officer Datuk Rohana Rozhan said Astro continues to execute strongly on its expansion strategy, delivering the double-digit revenue growth.
  
  "This is a result of new customers and good take-up of value added products and services such as high definition, Personal Video Recording, Multi-room, On Demand (Astro First and Astro Best) and Superpack, which have contributed to the ARPU (average revenue per use) growth of five per cent from RM89 to RM93," she told a press conference here yesterday.
  
  Rohana said total subscribers grew by 418,000 (comprising of 209,000 for Pay TV and 209,000 for Njoi), increasing Astro's total customer base to 3.5 million and an overall TV household penetration rate to 52 per cent.
  
  For its fourth quarter ended January 31 2013, Astro recorded a net profit of RM83.2 million, down 47 per cent from RM157 million in the previous year.
  
  Revenue stood at RM1.1 billion from RM1 billion recorded in the corresponding quarter.
  
  In a filing to Bursa Malaysia yesterday, Astro said the decrease in net profit was mainly due to a reduction in interest income of RM41.4 million and higher depreciation of RM57.5 million, which resulted in lower tax expenses by RM22.3 million.
  
  Rohana said Astro is aiming to convert the rest of its residential subscribers to the Astro B.yond platform by the end of January 2014.
  
  "We have momentum in adding both new Pay TV and Njoi customers and will continue to build on our 52 per cent household penetration rate, which in turn will make Astro more attractive," she added.

As mentioned yesterday, MBF had increased its privatisation offer.

• PETALING JAYA (March 15, 2013): The controlling shareholder of MBf Holdings Bhd (MBfH) has revised upward his takeover offer for the remaining shares of the group to RM1.70 from RM1.50 and the offer for its remaining warrants to 70 sen from 50 sen previously. http://www.thesundaily.my/news/637245

 Is 1.70 enough?

Not even close.

Come on, the offer could and should be more generous!

Let me use the data from yesterday news.

• Currently, he already owns 535,685,704 shares, or 92.77% stake, in the company.

 MBF total shares is 577,423, 224.

Effectively, he's trying to buy up the rest of the shares or 577,423, 224. - 535,685,704 = 41,737,520 shares.

At 1.70 a share, he's paying 41737.520 * 1700 = 70.953 million.

Yes, that's his cost of privatisting MBF. (ps: this calculation is not 100% accurate because it's based on the news report. By right, I should count his cost of buying out the warrants too)

Here comes the multi million ringgit question.

MBF Cards was sold for how?

Yes, how muchie?

How? How?





Yeah.... see my thinking?

I believe the offer to buyout the rest of the MBF shares should be much more.

The owner, already own the bulk of the company already. To buy out the rest, won't cost him too much money. So I hope the offer should be fair to the shareholders of MBF Holdings.

Dare I say, show me 2.50?

The following was posted on the Edgemalaysia.

• Minority shareholders unhappy with MBf  Business & Markets 2013
  Written by Shalini Kumar of theedgemalaysia.com   
  Thursday, 14 March 2013 10:18
  
  KUALA LUMPUR: Minority shareholders of MBf HOLDINGS BHD [] (MBfH) are hoping the authorities will delay the suspension of the company until a dividend payment — which they were looking forward to following the sale of the MBF cards business in September last year — has been paid out.
  
  A minority shareholder said yesterday a group of them had sent a letter to Bursa Malaysia, the Minority Shareholder Watchdog Group and the Securities Commission appealing against the suspension of MBfH shares that will take place five days after the issuance of an independent advice circular (IAC) to shareholders — in relation to a takeover offer being done by major shareholder Tan Sri Dr Ninian Mogan Lourdenadin.
  
  Lourdenadin, who now holds 92.77% of the company, launched a takeover on Feb 7, offering RM1.50 for the shares,  50 sen for the warrants and RM4.64 for the Redeemable convertible secured loan stock (RCSLs). When he launched the takeover, he had 87% of the shares.
  
  On Feb 27 after his stake increased to more than 90%, the company said the stock would be suspended five days after the issuance of the IAC.
  
  But the stock will continue to be listed as Lourdenadin cannot compulsorily buy the rest of the shares because the acceptance level has not reached the required threshold.
  
  For an offeror to compulsorily buy all the shares, the acceptance level has to be more than 90% of the outstanding shares at the point of making the offer. In this case, it should reach an acceptance level of more than 98%.
  
  A minority shareholder said they would accept the offer provided the dividend payment was made from the proceeds of the disposal of MBF Cards.
  “We will support the major shareholder’s bid to take over the company as per the price offered after the special dividend is paid,” he said.
  
  Proceeds from the sale of the cards business of RM172.07 million, if distributed, works out to about 30 sen per unit.
  
  It is understood that the IAC was to have been released last week, but this has yet to happen.
  
  Another minority shareholder feels the independent directors are not paying attention to safeguarding the interest of the minority.
  “I don’t think it’s right that the independent directors jumped the gun and sold their shares even before the IAC was released.
  “I’m all right with the decision to take the company private. But independent directors should act in the interest of the minority,” he said, adding that he feels the take-over offer of RM1.50 per share is not a fair price.
  
  “The stock is currently valued at RM2.37 per share. How can we be happy with an offer price that is low?
  “Also, if the takeover were to be successful, it would deprive us of what is owed in the first place. It’s not right to have something printed in black and white and then not follow through with it.”
  
  At the close of trading yesterday, MBfH was flat at RM1.52, having reached an intra day high of RM1.59.
  
  On Monday, Lourdenadin extended the takeover offer by another two weeks to April 3, from the original date of March 20.

And ....

• MBF hits 9-yr high amid demands for higher takeover offer  Business & Markets 2013
  Written by Chong Jin Hun of theedgemalaysia.com   
  Thursday, 14 March 2013 10:59
  
  KUALA LUMPUR (Mar 14): MBf HOLDINGS BHD [] (MBFH) soared as much as 17% to its highest in over nine years amid minority shareholders' unhappiness over the takeover offer  by the diversified company's controlling shareholder,  dealers said.
  
  At 10.47 am, MBFH shares were traded at RM1.75 with some 955,000 shares done, placing the stock among ten top gainers. The stock had earlier risen as much as 26 sen to RM1.78 --  its highest since June  2003, Bloomberg data show.
  
  A dealer said the gains in MBFH shares were due to investors are asking for a higher offer from Tan Sri Dr Ninian Mogan Lourdenadin, who is offering RM1.50 a share to take over the firm.
  
  "The public will reject the offer as they are not happy. Minority shareholders are hoping that the acquirer will offer a higher price,"  the dealer told theedgemalaysia.com.
  
  The edgemalaysia.com yesterday received calls from some shareholders saying they were even prepared to go to court on this.
  
  Ninian had owned 87% of MBFH when he offered to buy the remaining shares of the firm at RM1.50 each on February 6 this year.
  
  He also offered to acquire its remaining warrants at 50 sen each and outstanding redeemable convertible secured loan stocks issued by MBFH’s wholly-owned subsidiary Wellink Invesments Ltd at RM4.64 each.
  
  For the exercise to succeed, the acquirer will have to secure an acceptance level of more than 90% of the remaining 13% stake he plans to acquire. This means Ninian's stake in MBFH will have to go up to 98.7% for the takeover to go through.
  
  However, that has not happened so far. Exchange filings show that his latest reported equity portion had only touched 92.77%. As such, the deadline for the offer has been extended to April 3 from original date on March 20.
  
  Minority shareholders are unhappy with the offer as they feel the price does not reflect the true value of the firm. The offer price of RM1.50 per MBFH share is a 37% discount to the company's latest reported book value per share of RM2.37.
  
  MBFH’s website indicates that the firm was initially set up as a private limited entity on October 10 1963 before it was converted to a public limited company on October 21 that year under the name Island Hotels & PROPERTIES [] (M) Ltd.
  
  The firm had, subsequently, changed its name to Island Hotel & Properties (M) Bhd and Pacific Development Credit Bhd on April 15 1966 and May 26 1976 respectively before adopting its current name on July 20 1981.
  
  MBFH’s businesses include real estate, financial services, and education. The firm also operates tea, coffee, cocoa PLANTATION []s.

My say?

The shareholders should be given a fair share from the sale of MBF Cards.

It is the ONLY FAIR thing to do.

Please stop screwing the shareholders!

Subsequently..

• Controlling shareholder ups MBf takeover price to RM1.70  
  Business & Markets 2013
  Written by Kamarul Anwar and Shalini Kumar of theedgemalaysia.com   
  Thursday, 14 March 2013 14:50
  
  KUALA LUMPUR (Mar 14): In an apparent attempt to sweeten the deal, MBf HOLDINGS BHD []’s (MBfH) CEO and largest shareholder Tan Sri Dr Ninian Mogan Lourdenadin has raised the takeover offer of its shares to RM1.70 per share and 70 sen per warrant, in order to take his company private.
  
  However, the revised offer price for MBfH’s shares is still inferior to the company’s book value of RM2.37 per share, or 39.41% higher than the new offer price.
  
  In a filing to Bursa Malaysia, the group said that the joint offerors – comprising Tor Private Ltd, Nadin Holdings Sdn Bhd, Impact Action Sdn Bhd and Market Share Investments Ltd – have revised the offer prices of the shares from RM1.50 apiece and the warrants from 50 sen apiece.
  
  The filing also stated that minority shareholders who have accepted the previous offer will receive another 20 sen per share or 20 sen per warrant to match up the new offer prices.
  
  The new offer price for MBfH’s shares is at a 22 sen or 14.86% premium to the closing price of RM1.48 on February 5, 2013, which was the last trading day before the takeover offer was officially made.
  
  The revised offer price for its warrants is also 27 sen or 62.79% higher from the closing price of 43 sen on the aforementioned date.
  
  Lourdenadin, who had previously attempted to take MBfH private in January 2013, has extended the takeover offer by two weeks to April 3 -- from March 20 -- in a bid to mop up all the remaining MBfH shares he does not own.
  
  Currently, he already owns 535,685,704 shares, or 92.77% stake, in the company.
  
  For an offeror to compulsorily buy all the shares, the acceptance level of has to be above 90% of the outstanding shares he does not own at the point of making the offer. In this case, it should reach an acceptance level of more than 98%.