LONDON (Alliance News) - Marlowe Holdings Ltd shares were suspended on Friday following the cash shell's statement on Thursday that it has entered talks on a possible reverse takeover and as it said it made a small pretax loss in the first half.
Belize-based investment firm Marlowe raised GBP5.2 million in a share placing in May as it changed its name from Shellshock Ltd and said it would seek to make deals in the business services sector. The placing was backed by Lord Ashcroft, the former Conservative Party treasurer, who took a 53.6% stake in the business.
On Thursday, the company said it was considering a potential reserve takeover, meaning its shares were suspended from trading on AIM Friday morning. It did not provide any further details on the talks.
For the half to the end of September, the company posted a pretax loss of GBP2,000, compared to a GBP13,000 profit a year earlier, as higher administrative expenses related to the changes in the business strategy offset higher interest income.
"During the period, we have identified attractive potential platform and bolt-on targets in line with our investment strategy. We believe that the targets identified could form the foundations of a dynamic B2B service group, focused on delivering essential annuity-type recurring asset maintenance services underpinned by the customer's obligation to meet stringent regulatory and legislative requirements," said Chief Executive Alex Dacre.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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Marlowe (MRL)