Personally, I was not too happy when I saw the news, but I wrote RM for the Crystallex line on why. Here was my email, which was fairly blunt:
Richard,
Do you (Crystallex) have a cogent rational for the effort and expense of
a reverse split? Does anyone believe that it will have any impact on
our delisting? I ask this because we were not selected for delisting
based on share price or market capitalization, which obviously is
unchanged by this action, but because we are no longer an operating
company.
I am somewhat disappointed because I think that Bob could raise the
existing share price to a dollar by simply making a deal with the note
holders and arranging sufficient suitable financing to carry us through
the arbitration. If arbitration is truly our only remaining option, and
Bob is simply vacationing in Hong Kong, then the only important issue to
the markets and shareholders is our ability to survive financially until
the end of the process. We have been repeatedly assured that financing
is no problem, perhaps now is the time to make that clear to the world.
If you read the Agoracom board, I am sure that you are aware that
current lack of any viable financing plan, followed by the reverse split
news is not popular with the retail base.
Perhaps you have some comments that shed light on the sensibility of this?
Thanks
RM quickly replied as always:
Hello Mr. XXX
The Company believes it has a very arguable and defensible position
relating to the Amex delisting decision and hearing. In 1998, when the
TSJ ruled to disallow the advancement of the 11 motions regarding the
Las Cristinas title, the Company had no operating assets and was in
search of a few opportunities that in 1999 and 2000 it took advantage
of. There is a similar history, pattern, cycle to the current position
of Crystallex .... who knows maybe the restoration, recovery or
resurrection the lost asset may reoccur like it did back then.
In the brief letter we received from Amex, the Company does believe it
meets the listing criteria raised. However, there was a comment about
the low share price which is discretionary by the exchange. Certainly
the Company believes some of the initiatives underway to deal with the
short term working capital (e.g sale of the equipment) and the
restructuring/refinancing of the notes should favorably impact
shareholder concerns and lead to better valuations.
If it comes down to share price in the near term, the company asked the
shareholders to consider and vote for an ability to reverse split the
shares to maintain the Amex listing. I'm sure most would agree that a
higher profiled US exchange listing should help improve valuations in
the longer term especially if successful in some of these other
initiatives and with respect to a resolution, settlement or judgment
regarding the las Cristinas.
An application or reapplication to a higher profile US exchange can take
months or years.
No one is vacationing or focused elsewhere!
Rgds,
Richard Marshall
