Ezra disclosures baffle more than enlighten
Just how does the so-called "forward agreement" between DNB and Frontica gel with a "right to purchase"?
AT first blush, the mystery of who sold a 7.04 per cent stake in offshore and marine group Ezra Holdings to Norway's DNB Bank on Sept 25 might appear to have been much ado about nothing. As analysts have conjectured, the roughly S$25 million deal was likely to do with a substantial shareholder having pledged some shares to DNB Bank as collateral for financing.
Case closed? Well, not so fast. Another look at the disclosures Ezra filed regarding the transaction shows that they raise more questions than they answer - particularly about their timing and content.
Ezra disclosed DNB's purchase of 207 million shares for S$0.12 apiece in a Singapore Exchange filing on Monday evening last week. Since the party on the other side had not been named at that point, the news briefly triggered a bout of speculation over whether the seller might have been the Lee family that controls Ezra.
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