MPCorp gets new shareholder, Tey buys 15mil shares

PETALING JAYA: A total of 15 million shares in Malaysia Pacific Corp Bhd (MPCorp), amounting to some 5.2% of the total paid-up capital in the company, have been sold off by its former chief executive officer (CEO) and controlling shareholder Bill Ch’ng Chong Poh to businessman Tey Por Yee, sources said.

A filing with Bursa Malaysia confirmed that Ch’ng had disposed of 15 million shares at 55 sen apiece on July 18. No buyer has been disclosed yet.

In April, StarBiz had reported that there was a possibility of the emergence of a new shareholder in the property company, which owes about RM120mil to Amanahraya Development Sdn Bhd (ADSB).

It had been reported then that Ch’ng was in several discussions with possible white knights and could be close to sealing a deal with a businessman who had been on a shopping spree in fairly recent times, snapping up substantial stakes in mid-sized and small listed companies.

The companies Tey has bought into include Protasco Bhd, Winsun Technologies Bhd and Malaysian AE Models Holdings Bhd.

He is also group CEO and managing director at Nextnation Communication Bhd, a smallish mobile applications and platform provider listed on Mesdaq. It remains to be seen at this point what is Tey’s role in helping the financially troubled MPCorp.

Recall, in August 2008, a joint-venture (JV) agreement was entered into between ADSB and MPCorp’s wholly owned subsidiary Oriental Pearl City Properties Sdn Bhd, whereby Oriental had granted a put option to ADSB to exercise its rights to sell its entire investment of 22% in a proposed development known as the LakeHill Resort Development to MPCorp on or before the expiry of the option period.

ADSB exercised the put option granted to it on March 23, 2012 and Oriental was to purchase ADSB’s participation in the JV project.

A sum of RM110.8mil was due on May 20, 2012. A few months later, MPCorp was served with a writ of summons and ordered to settle the amount.

MPCorp has since said it would make the payment plus interest amounting to RM120mil or risk facing more late interest payments, which would further hurt the already financially beleaguered firm, which has defaulted on loans worth millions. Following Tey’s emergence in MPCorp as a substantial shareholder, Ch’ng still holds 56.36% in the firm.

Last Friday, the company also proposed to undertake several corporate exercises, including a proposed rights issue of shares with free warrants.

MPCorp shares were last traded at 47 sen each, down 1.5 sen.