SINGAPORE: The former chief executive officer of offshore gas and oil contractor Swiber Holdings and seven ex – directors of the collapsed firm were charged in court on Friday( Oct 13) over the misleading announcement of a US$ 710 million( S$ 972 million ) project it claimed to have secured in the West African market in 2014.
Otherwise, Swiber had signed simply a letter of intent authorising it to invest up to US$ 2 million.
In the two years following the announcement, some managers also failed to inform the Singapore Exchange that Swiber Offshore Construction had lost its Champion Waterflood Project in 2014. & nbsp,
This revelation was necessary to avoid establishing a false industry in the mainboard – listed Swiber’s assets, and was required under the SGX Mainboard Rules.
The chargings come nearly seven years after examinations first began into Swiber’s possible vulnerabilities of the Securities and Futures Act, and after Swiber Holdings was delisted with effect from June this year.
The eight charged on Friday are: & nbsp, Former Swiber CEO and Singaporean Yeo Chee Neng, 55, who received the most charges of the group with nine levelled against him, as well as ex – directors Chia Fook Eng, a 79 – year – old Singaporean, Malaysian Francis Wong Chin Sing, 59, 52 – year – old Singaporean Nitish Gupta, 56 – year – old Malaysian Oon Thian Seng, 73 – year – old French national Pers Jean, 55 – year – old Singaporean Raymond Kim Goh, and 54 – year – old Singaporean Leonard Tay Gim Sin.
Kim was the leader of Swiber and executive president, while Wong was party CEO and Tay was party chief financial officer.
According to command sheets, the directors either were concerned for, consented to or displayed abuse over Swiber’s statement on the SGX Exchange Network in December 2014 stating that it had secured a project for US$ 710 million.
The false assertion was likely to cause others to get securities, the cost sheets stated.
According to an SGX news reprimanding Swiber in October 2016, Swiber had failed to provide a” sensible and honest statement” over this task.
Swiber’s December 2014 news of the job was titled” Swiber breaks into the North American business with US$ 710 million industry growth honor”.
According to SGX, the announcement stated that Swiber had secured the job from a Houston – based oil and gas company to provide service for an offshore industry development project. & nbsp,
In July 2016, Swiber announced that the task had not been able to progress according to its unique routine and that there had been no revenue from the venture.
Most of the eight people’s charges are related and mirror each other, except for the ones faced by Yeo, past Swiber CEO, who received some special fees including insider trading.
Between May and June 2016, he reportedly knew that Swiber was looking for buyers to add funds to pay off its ties that were due for redemption in June and July 2016, failing which Swiber may have to default on the bonds.
Swiber was unable to stable the money to save the 2016 friendship and had to get a bridging loan from DBS Bank to do so.
A potential buyer also failed to submit funds to Swiber, which the organization intended to use to save the July relationship.
Despite knowing that this info, if typically available, may include a material effect on the price of Swiber’s stocks, Yeo reportedly told his wife, Yio Cheng Cheng, about it. He should have known at this point that if she learned of this information, she would probably buy Swiber’s securities.
Additionally, he allegedly persuaded his partner to buy Swiber ties worth$ 500,000 that were held in a joint account between him and Yio.
Yeo is likewise charged with carelessly failing to inform Swiber in reading of the hundreds of securities or long-term assets he held through a joint account with his wife.
According to a Reuters report from 2016, Swiber” is the biggest native name to tumble target to the decline in oil prices” when it filed for liquidation in July 2016 despite having debts of hundreds of millions of dollars.
According to a Reuters report, Swiber had only 10 arteries at the time it first listed, but it later increased to own and operate 51 arteries, with more than 2,700 people spread across South-east Asia and other nations.
Making a false statement that is likely to encourage people to buy stocks carries the consequences of up to seven years in jail, an South$ 250, 000 good, or both.