Unsponsored firms face trading suspension, then delisting
By JOYCE HOOI 05 December 2009
Twenty-nine of the original 154 Catalist firms remain without a sponsor yesterday.
And 22 of them have indicated their intent to appoint a sponsor by Feb 5, 2010.
Of the remaining seven, two are suspended and five have said that they will pursue alternative plans.
The two suspended firms are Falmac and Oriental Century.
In October, Falmac went through a board overhaul that resulted in four new directors. It has been loss-making since 2003 and reported an unaudited FY 2008 loss of $3.22 million in May.
Asiatravel.com Holdings, CFM Holdings, Iconic Holdings, Koon Holdings and Soup Restaurant Group will be looking at available alternative options.
‘Investors are advised to review and monitor companies’ transition plans and to take into account their status in making investment decisions,’ a Singapore Exchange (SGX) statement said yesterday.
Companies that have not appointed a sponsor by Feb 5, 2010, are subject to share trading suspension until Dec 31, 2010, after which they will be delisted.
The original deadline was February 2010. But SGX, in a nod to the hasher economic conditions wrought by the recession, extended the time limit to December 2010.
Share trading will resume when a company appoints a sponsor or undertakes corporate action to maintain its listing status.
Of the 154 Catalist firms that were listed when the board was launched in February last year, 87 companies have found a sponsor and 32 have made the leap to the main board.
Another six have been delisted.
The difficulty of finding a willing sponsor aside, engaging one can be a costly endeavour as well.
Earlier this year, sponsor fees could range from $100,000 to $180,000 annually.
To ease the transition, SGX said in July that it would guarantee 90 per cent of loans of up to $50,000 each that a Catalist firm borrows from Hong Leong Finance to pay sponsor fees.
Firms that hired sponsors before July, or those still without sponsors, are eligible.
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29 Catalist firms still do not have sponsors
Unsponsored firms face trading suspension, then delisting
By JOYCE HOOI
05 December 2009
Twenty-nine of the original 154 Catalist firms remain without a sponsor yesterday.
And 22 of them have indicated their intent to appoint a sponsor by Feb 5, 2010.
Of the remaining seven, two are suspended and five have said that they will pursue alternative plans.
The two suspended firms are Falmac and Oriental Century.
In October, Falmac went through a board overhaul that resulted in four new directors. It has been loss-making since 2003 and reported an unaudited FY 2008 loss of $3.22 million in May.
Asiatravel.com Holdings, CFM Holdings, Iconic Holdings, Koon Holdings and Soup Restaurant Group will be looking at available alternative options.
‘Investors are advised to review and monitor companies’ transition plans and to take into account their status in making investment decisions,’ a Singapore Exchange (SGX) statement said yesterday.
Companies that have not appointed a sponsor by Feb 5, 2010, are subject to share trading suspension until Dec 31, 2010, after which they will be delisted.
The original deadline was February 2010. But SGX, in a nod to the hasher economic conditions wrought by the recession, extended the time limit to December 2010.
Share trading will resume when a company appoints a sponsor or undertakes corporate action to maintain its listing status.
Of the 154 Catalist firms that were listed when the board was launched in February last year, 87 companies have found a sponsor and 32 have made the leap to the main board.
Another six have been delisted.
The difficulty of finding a willing sponsor aside, engaging one can be a costly endeavour as well.
Earlier this year, sponsor fees could range from $100,000 to $180,000 annually.
To ease the transition, SGX said in July that it would guarantee 90 per cent of loans of up to $50,000 each that a Catalist firm borrows from Hong Leong Finance to pay sponsor fees.
Firms that hired sponsors before July, or those still without sponsors, are eligible.
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