Amid the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) discovery of illegal share sales by Abra Mining and Industrial Corporation and some officials from 2015 to 2019, the firm faces involuntary delisting from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE).
In a report by the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the PSE announced its decision to proceed with involuntary delisting and maintain the trading suspension on Abra Mining’s shares in response to the controversial share sales, which have been in place since March 4, 2021.
Under PSE’s delisting rules, an involuntarily delisted company is barred from seeking to relist within five years from delisting, and its directors as well as its executive officers are prohibited from participating in any listing application within the same period.
Consequently, this move also left minority stockholders and passive investors with illiquid shares, subjecting any over-the-counter transactions to higher capital gains tax.
In three separate decisions dated April 8, the SEC found that Abra Mining’s shares lodged with the Philippine Depository and Trust Corporation (PDTC) exceeded the number listed on the local bourse, contravening PSE regulations which required all fully paid issued and outstanding shares to be listed.
While shares lodged with the PDTC totaled 258.957 billion, only 72.746 billion were listed on the exchange.
Earlier, the SEC revoked Abra Mining’s registration statement and certificate of permit to offer and sell securities and imposed fines ranging from Php 400,000 to Php 47.4 million. The fines were imposed on various parties, such as President James Beloy, directors Premy Beloy and Joel Beloy, and stock transfer agent Asian Transfer & Registry.
Abra Mining attributed the fraudulent registration and listing of shares to its former president, Jeremias Beloy, and “unknown cohorts,” who orchestrated the illegal share sales during Beloy’s tenure as president and CEO.
