By NZPA
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Wednesday 19th March 2003 |
Text too small? |
The panel said in a statement today that Christchurch man Kevin Arscott had agreed to sell about 1.4 percent of Designer Textile's shares.
Mr Arscott, who is the company's No 2 shareholder with about 7.25 percent of Designer Textiles, bought 500,000 shares after the Takeovers Code came into force in July 2001.
However, because Mr Arscott was judged by the panel to be an associate of chief executive George Gould, his acquisition in November probably breached the code.
He undertook to sell 444,444 shares within six months, having sold 55,556 in the company's one-for-nine buyback offer.
"The panel will not hold a formal meeting...to investigate this matter because Mr Arscott has volunteered to give the panel a legally enforceable undertaking...
"The panel accepts that at the time the purchase took place Mr Arscott did not realise that it was probably in breach of the code," panel members said.
The Takeovers Panel uncovered Mr Arscott's case during an investigation into the purchase by several members of the Rutherford family of shares in Gould Holdings Ltd, which owns 24.69 percent of Designer Textiles.
The panel found the Canterbury family had breached the Takeovers Code and ordered it to sell 753,000 Designer Textiles shares, or 2.1 percent of the company.
Mr Gould is also chairman of Designer Textiles, and effectively the controlling shareholder.
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