Stocks
Emerald Oil Executives Quietly Selling Shares, Bypassing Legal Mandates
The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has mandated prior announcements for share acquisition or sale by entrepreneurs and executives of listed companies. However, circumventing this regulation, the entrepreneurs and executives of Emerald Oil Industries Limited, a listed company, have acquired shares without any formal declaration. They discreetly purchased shares at a lower price and later sold them at the highest market value, causing significant losses for ordinary investors. This incident has raised concerns about securities law violations and exploitation of investors, as reported by sources connected to the market. This information has been gathered from the Dhaka-Chittagong Stock Exchange (DSE-CSE) and reliable sources.
It has been revealed that the entrepreneurs and executives of Emerald Oil have purchased shares at a lower price without making any announcement and later sold them at prices increased up to Tk 188.80, causing substantial losses for ordinary investors. This has resulted in significant financial setbacks for regular investors. At one point, without declaring any intention to repurchase shares at a lower price, multiple entrepreneurs and executives of the company acquired shares, further impacting institutional and general investors. Currently, approximately 60% of the company’s total shares are held by entrepreneurs and executives.
On the other hand, ordinary investors claim to have fallen victim to a major scam, alleging that shares were purchased at a lower price without any announcement and then sold at an increased price, deceiving ordinary investors. The cycle of duping ordinary investors continues as shares are being acquired again at a lower price without any public declaration.
According to sources, there has been a significant change in the shareholding of Emerald Oil in the last month in the food and allied sectors. The share of entrepreneurs and executives in the company has increased to 21.35%. On the contrary, the share of institutional and general investors has seen a substantial decrease. However, there is no information on the increase in the shareholding of entrepreneurs and executives on both stock exchanges in the country. Investors are alarmed by the ongoing transactions of share purchase and sale without any formal announcement.
According to DSE sources, it has been observed that as of December 31, 2023, the share of entrepreneurs and executives in the company was 38.26%. However, by January 31, 2024, this share has surged to 59.61%. In other words, within one month, the share of entrepreneurs and executives in the company has increased by 21.35%.
Additionally, on December 31, 2023, the share of institutional investors in the company was 12.26%, and the share of general investors was 49.48%. However, by January 31, 2024, the share of institutional investors has decreased to 6.97%, and the share of general investors has decreased to 33.42%. In essence, within one month, the company has experienced a reduction of 5.29% in the share of institutional investors and a reduction of 16.06% in the share of general investors.
Furthermore, investors have alleged non-payment of declared dividends against the company. In the past year, the company had announced a total cash dividend of 10%, including an interim dividend of 5% for investors. The approval for this dividend was obtained from the shareholders of the company. However, the payment has not been made within the stipulated time for the declared dividend.
According to the directives of the regulatory authority BSEC, companies must distribute declared dividends to investors within 30 days of obtaining approval during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Board of Directors. In this regard, the BSEC issued an order on January 14, 2021, stating that companies must deposit the declared dividends as a bonus (BD) within the 30-day approval period. Failure to comply will result in penalties and legal consequences for the company.
Despite the regulatory directive, the company has not distributed the declared dividends to investors as bonus shares in the food and allied sectors. The deadline for transferring the funds of these declared dividends was January 25 of the current year.
On the other hand, after reviewing the financial report of the concluded fiscal year as of June 30, 2023, the management of Emerald Oil declared a total cash dividend of 10%, including an interim dividend of 5%. The record date for this dividend was November 29 of the same year, and the AGM was held on December 27. The declared dividend was approved for all shareholders, including previous entrepreneurs and executives whose shares were beyond 30.45%. Despite the passage of the stipulated time, the company has not conveyed the amount of the declared dividends to the investors. In this situation, investors are seeking financial compensation, and the regulatory authority BSEC is considering intervention against the company for non-compliance and possible market manipulation related to the company’s shares. Additionally, allegations of manipulation regarding the company’s share prices have persisted for an extended period.
The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has today approved appointment of Ms. Nuzhat Anwar as the new Managing Director of Dhaka Stock Exchange PLC. (DSE).
Ms. Nuzhat Anwar brings over two decades of experience in financial markets, banking, and development finance. Prior to her appointment, she worked at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, where she held multiple senior leadership roles across Africa and South Asia. Her positions included Resident Representative for Liberia and Sierra Leone, Senior Country Officer for Bangladesh covering Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal, and acting Cluster Manager during the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent transition period.
Ms. Anwar also served as an IFC Country Officer in Botswana and Namibia, where she played a key role in establishing IFC’s presence in Gaborone and advancing a sustainable investment program, including IFC’s first investment in Botswana. She offers deep expertise in capital management, treasury and liquidity, transaction services, portfolio optimization, and market advocacy. Earlier in her career, she spent 16 years with Citibank Bangladesh and Standard Chartered Bank Bangladesh in various senior management roles.
Ms. Anwar holds a Master’s degree in Commerce (Finance) from the University of Dhaka.
On her appointment as the Managing Director of DSE, the Chairman of the Board of DSE Mr. Mominul Islam said, “We are pleased to receive the approval of BSEC for appointment of Ms. Anwar as the new Managing Director. Over the last one year the NRC and Board of have worked hard to recruit a competent leader as the MD of DSE. We are confident that Ms. Anwar, with her excellent leadership trait, vast experience in the financial sector in home and abroad and deep passion for transformation in the Capital Market of the Country, is the right candidate to lead DSE in the days ahead. Now, we will complete the internal processes to onboard Ms. Anwar at soonest.”
Dhaka Stock Market DSE, Bourse on the second working day of the week, 30th September, ended with a negative performance in Indices and a hike in Turnover from the previous working session. This information is known from DSE sources.
503 crore 90 lakh taka shares were traded on this day. 22 crore 58 lakh more tradings were done in DSE today compared to the previous workday, 29th September, Shares worth Tk 481 crores 31 lakh shares were traded last time, Sunday.
The benchmark DSEX lost 33.61 points or 5,624 The Shariah-based index DSES dropped 7.36 point or 1,263 and the blue-chip index DS30 decreased by 9.57 points or 2,053.
Of the issues traded, 72 advanced, 299 declined and 25 remained unchanged.
Shahjibazar Power Company Limited ranked top gainer on DSE, the share price increased by Tk 4.00 paisa or 9.76 percent. On this day, the share was last traded at Tk 45.00 paisa.
Dhaka Electric Supply Company Limited ranked top loser on the DSE, the share price dropped by Tk 1.80 paisa or 7.56 percent. On this day, the share was last traded at Tk 22.00 paisa.
DSE topped on trade is Pragati Life Insurance Limited 25 crore 35 lakh takas of company shares have been traded.
A total of 27 companies’ shares were traded in the Block on Dhaka Stock Exchange. A total of 1 crore 50 lakh 42 thousand 956 shares of the companies were traded. The financial value of which is 65 crore 60 lakh taka
One of the Listed companies, National Polymer Limited has recommended 10.50% Cash Dividend for the year ended June 30, 2024.
It has reported Consolidated EPS of Tk 2.27 paisa, and Consolidated NAV per share of Tk 30.63 for the year ended March 31, 2024.
The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the company will be held on December 18, through the digital platform. The record date for this has been fixed at October 22.
The Company also discloses its financial reports for the second quarter, (April – June 24).
As per the company’s consolidated life revenue account for April to June 2024, the excess of total income over total expenses, including claims (surplus), stood at Tk 1,394.24 million. This marks a significant increase from the surplus of Tk 823.68 million during the same period in 2023.
For the first half of 2024, from January to June, the company reported a surplus of Tk 2,177.57 million, compared to Tk 1,290.39 million in the corresponding period of the previous year.
Additionally, the Life Insurance Fund balance as of June 30, 2024, reached Tk 55,188.62 million, showing a net increase of Tk 5,892.25 million from Tk 49,296.37 million on June 30, 2023.
