By Dipo Olowookere
The management of Japaul Oil Plc has blamed media reports for the recent downslide of its shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
Few weeks ago, there were reports that an American equity company, Milost Global Inc was investing billions of Dollar into the Nigerian firm.
This jerked up buying interests in the shares of Japaul Oil and caused a huge rise in its stocks at the market.
However, some days ago, a media platform, Business Day, questioned the authenticity of the deal, pointing out that what the US-based company was pumping into Japaul Oil was even more than the total value of the Nigerian firm.
Investors, who read the report, started offloading the shares, causing a sharp drop in the value of Japual Oil stocks at the equity market.
Not happy with this development, Chairman of Japaul Oil, Mr Jegede Paul, condemned the media report, describing it as “unfair.”
According to him, “We informed the Regulatory Authorities that we have signed Milost Equity Subscription Agreement (MESA 1) and Milost has not asked for any upfront fees from us until disbursement takes place, even the facilitation fees to Palewater who are advisers to the transaction were technically agreed to be paid when we start to drawdown on the facility despite agreement signed.
“An escrow account agreement is being worked upon to trigger the drawdown on the facility.
“We don’t really know where the dailies got their variables that do not add up mathematically about Milost math. They should have watched and see what happens about the issue of performance.
“This Newspaper Article against Milost has been wrongly perceived by the investing public and this is terribly affecting our share price on the Stock Market. This is simply sad.
“Milost currently holds no shares in Japaul as yet as we are awaiting regulatory approval, I just wonder how would it then be said that it is involved in a pumping and dump scheme in Japaul shares and the financing is provided in single tranches of between $1 to $5 million until our share price recovers.
“How will it reach high prices when we are receiving unfair reporting by one Nigerian media outlet that purports lies and in real fact is that we have opened our doors for the media to call us and verify facts before going to print.
The media needs us and we also need it and we can’t be seen fighting each other, after all, we are all Nigerians.
“It’s sad because since the BusinessDay publication, our share price has plummeted over 100 percent and the news was misconstrued opinions that remain false and unfounded.”
On his part, the Senior Partner & CIO of Milost, Mr Solly Asibey, stated that, “The ingenuity and financial engineering behind our Milost Equity Subscription Fund (MESA), as well as the Milost structure of engagement makes it easy for us to invest heavily in companies with high growth potential, whilst reducing our risk of investments through the checks and balances that are part and parcel of our framework of engagement.
“Our aim is to make investments in companies that will have a high impact within the vertical industry in which they operate, thus increasing the potential for the companies to be counted amongst the best in their industries globally.
“Our modus operandi has always been to invest in companies that will add value to the country and its citizens in terms of wealth and job creation, as well as the ability to contribute positively towards stepping up the economic transformation of the country.
“Our success is intertwined with the success of our investee companies; and from a corporate governance perspective, we subscribe to the rules and regulations of the Stock Exchange, Federal Reserve bank and the SEC in terms of all our engagements.”
