UPDATED Tricubes Berhad, awarded the RM50million 1Malaysia email contract, is now the focus of intense public speculation and anger. Many have accused Prime Minister Najib Razak of nepotism and cronyism in awarding the project to Tricubes, which is linked to his banker brother Nazir. The project has also been panned as extravagant and wasteful.
Many also question why - if such a project was necessary in the first place - should it have been granted to a troubled firm instead of to one with a healthy and proven track record.
Even so,Tricubes has already launched the myemail.my “Citizen Inbox” service with registration to begin at the end of April. The government has stated the service is voluntary and no public funds will be used to finance the project.
"It is the project that enables Tricubes to secure funding especially with the help of Nazir, but that's not the point. Tricubes does not have a track record and should if falter, the the entire project and all the official email will be stuck. Will the government do a bail out then?" a head of research at a local brokerage told Malaysia Chronicle.
Faces delisting for capital depletion and lack of revenue generator
Tricubes is already listed as a GN3 or troubled firm by the stock exchange Bursa Malaysia. If the company fails to finalize its financial restructuring program and find a revenue generator by the end of October 2011, then it may face being delisted.
The second largest shareholder of Tricubes Berhad is Commerce Technology Ventures Sdn Bhd, a private-equity fund established by Bank Negara together with the CIMB group headed by Nazir Razak, the brother of Prime Minister Najib Razak.
On Tuesday, Najib who is also Finance minister announced that the government had awarded a new project worth RM50million to Tricubes Bhd to set up a webpage.
Every citizen aged 18 years and above would be given an email account – "1Malaysia email". The project also involves structuring a center for e-government services, including a social web network, debt payment pages on the Internet and so on.
In a statement on October 12, 2010, Tricubes had said its auditors expressed concern in the company’s financial report for the period ending March 31, 2010, as shareholders equity was much lower than the prescribed 50 per cent of capital. It was then placed under GN3 status by the stock exchange.
In addition, the company also experienced a net loss of as much as RM3.35 million (RM3,346,752). Although Tricubes appealed, Bursa Malaysia declined to approve its request for exemption from GN3.
Desperate for a white knight
According to the Bursa's GN3 rules, Tricubes has to implement a restructuring plan within 12 months, commencing 29 October 2010. The plan also needs to be approved by Bursa, a sponsor must also be appointed within three months, while six months is allocated to the restructuring proper.
If Tricubes fails to comply with any of the rules, Bursa Malaysia can temporarily halt trading in its stock and even withdraw its listing.
Based on the latest information from Tricubes on April 1, 2011, there have been no major developments in its search for financial solutions. It also needs to submit a restructuring report before October 29, 2011, or face delisting.
Tricubes had tried to buy 32.2 per cent of Pos Malaysia from Khazanah Nasional but failed.
Perhaps Najib had hoped to play role of white knight when he announced the 1Malaysia E-mail project for Tricubes. This would enable the firm to submit a valid proposal to the Bursa within the given dateline.
But the project met with widespread objection as Malaysians expressed reluctance to accept email accounts even if these were given free. They accused Najib of being spendthrift and wasting taxpayers' money which could be better used to help the poor.
The project was also heavily condemned for containing elements of nepotism, and questions are being asked if Najib was splurging public money to help his brother. The deal would also benefit Tricubes' biggest shareholder Khairun Zainal Mokhtar.
Biggest stakeholder Khairun Zainal Mokhtar
According to official information, the second largest shareholder in Tricubes is Commerce Tricubes Technology Ventures, established in July 2000, with its main function to provide capital for technology development.
Until today, the company has invested in 22 other companies, which includes 10 Telecommunications Company, six in advanced manufacturing, five live science company and others.
Capital Commerce Technology Ventures controlled by Private Equity Management Sdn Bhd, which in turn is a company under the CIMB Group. According to Tricubes financial report in 2010, Commerce Technology Ventures is the second largest shareholder that holds 15.63% of the shares.
Khairun bin Zainal Mokhtar is the largest shareholder in Tricubes - who besides having 15.72 per cent of shares directly, also owns 14.17 per cent of the shares through Ambank.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.