Barbados Shipping and Trading's corporate office at Warrens, St. Michael. The conglomerate has been at the centre of a bid war that has also sparked regulatory scrutiny.

The Barbados Securities Commission (BSC) has blocked Neal and Massy Holdings from taking up the shares tendered by shareholders of Barbados Shipping and Trading Limited (BS&T) under its takeover offer.

The move by the regulator came a day after Neal and Massy itself obtained an order from the Barbados High Court throwing out rival AMCL Holdings' injunction against the execution of the BS&T deal.

Some 43 million shares were tendered, which would give Neal and Massy 84.4 per cent of the company.

Neal and Massy has offered to pay B$8.50 per share, for half of each investor's tender, wile the remaining half is payable in a share swap.

The BSC is contending that the terms of the deal have not been fully open and transparent, saying that "one or more shareholders may have tendered shares pursuant to the offer, and Neal and Massy has accepted such tender subject to conditions not stated in its offer document and not available to all shareholders."

Protecting investors

Its notice, which the BSC said was issued for "the protection of investors" in BS&T, expressly bars the conglomerate and its agents from taking up the tendered shares.

The commission, under the signature of its chairman Neville Nicholls, also said that any person affected by its order could apply in writing to be heard, and that such hearings would occur within 15 days, dated from December 20.

This effectively blocks Neal and Massy for the next two weeks.

The company said its legal team was evaluating responses to the BSC, but chief executive officer Bernard Dulal-Whiteway has telegraphed to BS&T shareholders that Neal and Massy intends to follow through on its offer, saying the company was "hopeful that the latest obstacle to the completion of the takeover will be overcome."

In the meantime, the BSC is still awaiting the court's ruling on whether either of the takeover candidates had breached bid rules.

business@gleanerjm.com