Axington-linked BN Group retracts statement after Obama photo scandal

Singapore

BELLAGRAPH Nova Group (BN Group), which is linked to Catalist-listed Axington, has withdrawn a press statement issued last month relating to a purported private meeting with former US president Barack Obama.

The retraction came shortly after BN Group admitted to doctoring photos of Mr Obama in marketing materials used to publicise the group.

Singapore-registered BN Group said in a note published on PR Newswire on Tuesday morning that "journalists and other readers should disregard" its statement issued on July 10.

In the statement, which has since been removed from PR Newswire's website, BN Group had announced the launch of its NETX division, which would focus on artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and healthcare.

It claimed then that NETX "was born" as a result of a "historic" closed-door meeting that BN Group's founders - Terence Loh, Nelson Loh and Evangeline Shen Che - had with Mr Obama last December to discuss how technology will bring about the next industrial revolution.

The Singaporean Loh cousins are Axington's controlling shareholders via Dorr Global Healthcare. Ms Shen, a Chinese jewellery merchant, is the non-independent non-executive chairman of professional advisory services firm Axington.

On July 28, Axington, formerly known as Axcelasia, proposed a second name change to NETX. It was also looking to change its core business to provide medical and consumer wellness services as well as to invest in medical technology, robotics and AI. This came after Dorr's offer to buy out Axington closed on July 13 with the Lohs' vehicle owning 92.5 per cent of Axington.

In BN Group's retracted July 10 statement, the three founders were said to be "greatly inspired" by Mr Obama's vision after their meeting.

The statement also featured a photo purporting to portray the Lohs, Ms Shen and Mr Obama together, with the caption stating that the four were "having an engaging discussion on how BN Group wants to harness technology to benefit mankind".

Over the weekend, Reuters reported that the company admitted to altering photos of Mr Obama to make it look as though he attended a meeting with its executives in Paris. BN Group's head of investor relations also said some of the information in the marketing materials was released prematurely or contained errors, after Reuters found inconsistencies when speaking to firms and persons BN Group said it was involved with.

BN Group grabbed headlines last week when it announced it held talks to take over English football club Newcastle United. Some of the doubts raised over the group's claims were also related to this takeover bid, Reuters reported.

The Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) has "engaged" Novus Corporate Finance, the continuing sponsor of Axington, over how it has assessed the "experience, expertise, character and integrity" of chairman Ms Shen. SGX RegCo said on Monday that it expects a response from Novus soon.

Shares of Axington slid further on Tuesday to close at S$0.19, down S$0.03 or 13.6 per cent. On Monday, the stock had fallen nearly 22 per cent at the start of trading, as investors reacted to the Reuters article.