Member Info for addicknt

It's not a question of accepting someone's view...it's simply a case of being objective when investing. It's obviously your choice to ignore him, but experience teaches me that you're making a big mistake.

dar, you say TW never talks about those companies he gets wrong, but in the same breath you proudly proclaim that you've never read his web site. Interesting...are you clairvoyant? I'll assume you aren't clairvoyant, so perhaps you can give examples where he's given "undue pressure" on companies that don't deserve strong scrutiny? I agree withJohn077'S observation that TW is better at bear calls than bull. I've never bought a stock he's recommended, but I've either sold or avoided a few he's unravelled, and it's saved me a great deal of money. So, Dar, I'll reiterate my suggestion...you ignore his stuff at your peril. Oh, and by the way, if you can't see the connection between TW/QPP and WTG and why it's relevant now, you're demonstrating all of the symptoms of the classic head-in-the-sand investor which makes pi's the cannon fodder of the AIM market. p.s his latest post suggests RT is the firing line as part of the S&G claim...is that relevant enough for you?

Hi Rocal, neither would I. Good investing requires the reading of all sides of the argument. There will be a few people on this bb who've dealt with private equity firms (I've spent half my life so doing) When conducting dd they don't look at a negative piece of information and say " Oh, I don't like that person, so it's ok to ignore what he's saying" They probe and prod until such time as they're satisfied they've got the correct answer. Investing in public companies should be no different. It becomes even more important when the person who's made the comments has been proved correct on so many occasions. It's interesting, I asked lindoser to provide examples of situations where TW has been wrong...I didn't get an answer. That's not to say he hasn't been wrong, but I can't remember too many examples. There's also a view held that TW simply sits in his bedroom and makes this stuff up. He doesn't. He has a very wide range of contacts in the City and it's quite clear people give him plenty of interesting information. No doubt people will accuse me of being an 'apologist', 'in his pay' etc etc, all of which are complete ballcocks. But frankly, it's their loss if they chose to ignore him, not mine.

GS, sorry but my information was very different, and I wasn't relying on TW for the info. Additionally, I'm fairly sure at the time of the disposal the company itself alluded to this situation. Indeed, I seem to recall they used it in part justification of the sale. Anyway, you will maintain your view and I will maintain mine. At the end of the day, we both seem to agree the writing was on the wall and the disposal was the saving grace. Just out of interest, I wonder if those guys who negotiated the sale (apart from Rose, who obviously is) will be party to the legal proceedings? They received very significant commissions for so doing and I'd have assumed S&G would also have them in their sights. The one person who appears completely blameless in all this is IM...and he's thrown in the towel...and I don't blame him.

lindoser, I've just seen your other post. Can you give me examples of ones he's got wrong? I'm most certainly not saying he hasn't, but I can't think of one. Btw, I don't own any shares and I continue to be interested because I lost a lot of money and want to know why. And, this is a public board designed to allow the discussion of shares...which is what I'm doing? Is that ok with you?

Phoenix, obviously I agree with you in all but one respect. QPP was out of money and it would not have been able to pay the wages. It was kept alive by virtue of the banks advancing enough money to cover the shortfall. They did this because the sale discussions were at an advanced stage and they took the risk that the process would complete and they therefore stood more chance of getting their money back. It was a risk that paid off.

lindoser, why do you imagine that to have an open mind in some way implies I work for TW? So many people on LSE accuse others of this. It's become yet another boring and dull cliche. In fact, if everyone who was accused of working for TW actually did, his company would employ more people than the NHS. So, just to put your fevered imagination at rest, I don't work for him, nor have I ever met him. However, that doesn't stop me knowing that he was right as far as QPP was concerned.

Dar, AEM and I have a long history. He was one of the people who continually lambasted me for voicing my opinions on QPP, despite the fact I was correct.(you weren't around in those days) I received a great deal of personal abuse from these people (99.99% of whom have now disappeared into the ether) So, forgive me, but if I want to have dig at AEM, I will do so, particularly as he has always adopted a very aggressive and condescending style. (note his comment about me forgetting the past, which was totally unnecessary, as well as being just plain wrong)

lindoser, I'm no fan of TW as a human being (although I have several friends who know him personally and who say he's fun to have a drink with) But that's not the point. You don't have to like someone to listen to what they've got to say, particularly when that person has a track record of getting things right...AFPO, CTAG, QPP etc, etc. As for me not listening to him, that's not what I said. I said I took a bit too long to fully understand and digest what he was saying. Once the penny dropped, I acted immediately and took my painful losses; a process which saved me many thousands more than if I'd simply ignored him.

ayuyn, I made this very point a long time ago. Fraud is always excluded from the general warranty and indemnity time limits.If proven in a civil action, which is what this will be, it also opens up the possibility of a criminal action. However, I really fail to understand why it's taken the eejits at S&G this long to discover something which became apparent so quickly i.e they didn't know what they'd bought, despite their supposed exhaustive dd. The wheels fell off the deal almost immediately and sure, it takes time to assemble evidence; but this long? Anyway, who knows? All will revealed in due course.

AEM , hilarious! First of all you state that you blame IM for this and add that he was the one in charge at the time. One post later, you accuse me of forgetting the facts of the past. Having now checked, I was correct...IM was not appointed to the company until August 2015...the disposal was completed in May 2015. Yet again you are proved to be wrong. I f I were you, I'd give this game up and concentrate on something else.

AEM, was IM actually in post at the time? I didn't think he was, but am not certain. As for TW, you are and always have been, totally, totally wrong. Your obstinacy in this respect is quite mind-boggling. Still, what do I care?...it's your money that's evaporated.

AEM, I agree with your sentiment...unusually! The fact is the dd was quite obviously conducted by the most incompetent group of people ever assembled. The company was a rotting, stinking pile of crap and S&G and it's advisors failed to spot it, despite the fact the internet was awash with very specific detail about the situation. Having said that, it is not us who will determine whether or not there was mis-representation, but a court and until such time as it gets to court, everyone is presumed innocent. However, my guess is that a settlement will be reached, but not before a small fortune has been spent on legal fees. I wonder if IM knew this was coming and his resignation was prompted by not being willing to stick around and waste his career fighting a legal battle for which he was not responsible. I think I would have done exactly the same.

lindoser, this site deletes all links to the SP site...so it's not possible. It always amuses me when people make the statement that they would never visit SP. Had they done so they would have saved themselves a great deal of money on this and many other other bent shares. Surely, as an investor you can see the sense in reading both sides of a story? TW was spot on the money with QPP and my only regret is that having read his stuff, I didn't act sooner. Not to read SP and other similar sites, is a classic case of cutting off your nose to spite your face.

I know some people on here (and elsewhere) regard TW as the devil, but with worse teeth, however his article today on this subject is very good and evenly balanced. If you can bear visiting the web site, it's worth a read.You may actually like what he says for once.

mentioned RT earlier. I will defer to no one in my detestation of that man, but in this instance and as far as I can see, he's not the one in the frame. The allegation is one of fraudulent misrepresentation and the implication is that said misrepresentation was provided by those who negotiated the sale i.e not RT. S&G are obviously aware that WTG doesn't have £600m, but I wonder if they have the advisors who acted for the company in their sights? From memory, didn't Rothschilds,amongst others, act? They are the ones with the cash and although every advisor will hide behind a myriad of disclaimers, the modern mood is to see through these and to chase those who can afford it. This will be fascinating...although not for shareholders.

This has just become seriously messy.

Sadly, the people who award themselves this quantum of remuneration and those who support them, have lost all sight of the value of money and their contribution to a business. It is, without doubt, one of the most socially divisive issue we face. Watching non-risk taking CEO's and boards (by that I mean those who've never set up a company with their own money in their lives) really sticks in my throat. I've come across far too many of them in my time and they all genuinely believe they walk on water. They are not entrepreneurs, they are simply over-blown managers of other people's money. There is absolutely no question that this guy has been over-rewarded, but then again, this company has a very long pedigree of behaving this way. The sooner these characters stop eating into your diminishing cash balance, the better chance you have of at least recouping something.

GS, sorry, I most certainly wasn't implying it was going to cost PI's even more. Far from it...I really hope that they get good prices for the assets and that you guys get a decent return.

GS,did you read the Chairman's comments? Although you are correct to state that the divestment programme will not be immediate, the fact is it will happen...it's there in black and white. Let's hope the company can find more suckers like S&G who are willing to pay a ludicrous price for the businesses. As for IM, I'd say he's done a good job of salvaging something from the absolute car crash he inherited. So, who's actually made money from this farrago? RT and his buddies...by the bucketload; the guys who negotiated the sale of the century; a few shareholders who were sensible enough to bail before the solids hit the air conditioning, and the myriad of advisors. Who didn't make any money, and in fact lost countless millions? Oh yes, the ordinary mug on the street i.e me and thousands of others. A sorry saga and a useful lesson for us all.