 24 – 30 January 2001 |
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Globe flotation in coming months By David Lindsay The Globe Organisation, one of Malta's leading fund management companies, is due to offer investors a 20 per cent flotation within the next two months. The move will make Globe the only organisation of the like to have a listing on the Exchange. Globe Chairman, Christopher Pace, explains the motive behind the move, "The company recognises that for it to compete head on with the two mighty giants, that is Bank of Valletta and HSBC, it has to be on a level playing field and have its shares valued in the same way that the others are valued, on the stock market. "Accordingly, it has been our intention for two years now to seek a listing on the Exchange and we have been preparing ourselves internally to do that through various reorganisations. In August last year we carried out a pre-placement of 14% of the company, which was a dilution for existing shareholders in terms of their existing shareholding. That was, if you like, a precursor to going public. "Now we intend to work very closely with our advisors to offer our shares on the stock market in the near future." However, Globe's employees are also expected to benefit greatly from the IPO, by being offered the possibility of gaining a personal stake in the performance of the company. According to Mr Pace, "The idea is to sell 20 per cent of the company and popularise our company in order to gain a broader base of shareholders while, at the same time, being able to offer our main asset, our employees, share options in the company to really get them on board and make them feel part of the success. "We're quite keen on getting this issue over and done with so that we can begin focussing on our more strategic focus, which is the open architecture idea whereby we intend to act as independent advisors to clients, offering them only the best of the best products." Globe just yesterday inaugurated a new centrally located branch in Qormi - to complement its branches in Valletta, Gozo, and at Bay Street. Richard Galea, Globe managing director, explained yesterday at the launch, "In the last 13 years of operation, the guiding principles have been those of courage and vision. It takes courage to invest in the best, and it takes vision to constantly be on the lookout for new opportunities of offering excellent service, always putting the client first. "We believe that our insistence that the client always comes first has been a major factor in Globe's success. We have given our clients a new attitude towards investment and savings, giving them a solid basis for their future and that of their families." | ||||||
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