17 May 2010 08:26
EIH plc
Appointment of Directors and Change of Nomad and Broker
Further to the Company's announcement of 11 May 2010, EIH plc ("EIH" or "the Company") announces that Rhys Cathan Davies, Brett Lance Miller and Ramanan Raghavendran have today been appointed to the board as non-executive directors of the Company in place of Christopher William Knight, Michael Gerald Moloney and Alexander Anderson Whamond who have stepped down with immediate effect. Rhys Davies has been appointed non-executive chairman.
Rhys Davies and Brett Miller are directors of Damille Investments Limited ("Damille") which holds 11,450,000 ordinary shares, representing 17.62% of the issued share capital of the Company. As Damille Investments Limited is a substantial shareholder in the Company Rhys Davies and Brett Miller are not deemed to be independent directors. Damille has undertaken to enter into an agreement between the Company and Damille such that at all times the Company is capable of acting independently of Damille and/or its directors and officers and that any transactions between themselves and any member of the Company are at arm's length and on a normal commercial basis.
All the new directors have confirmed that they are independent of the investment managers of the Evolvence India Fund and the Evolvence India Life Sciences Fund, where the majority of the Company's funds are invested.
Ramanan Raghavendran holds no interests over ordinary shares in the Company and is not otherwise connected to the Company, its shareholders or investment managers. He is therefore considered an independent non-executive director of the Company.
The Board also announces that it will undertake a review of the Company's affairs with a view to adopting a revised investment policy focused on the realization of the Company's assets. This will involve the Company not making any new investments beyond its existing contractual arrangements. It is the Board's intention to maximize the value of the Company's assets with the objective of returning to shareholders the Company's free cash in addition to any cash proceeds received from asset disposals and distributions from investments. Full details of the proposed changes to the Company's investment policy will be provided to shareholders, for approval, in due course. If the revised realization strategy (as referred above) is not approved, the Company also undertakes to appoint an additional independent non-executive director to the Board as soon as reasonably practicable.
The Company also announces that Singer Capital Markets Limited has been appointed as Nominated Advisor and sole corporate broker to the Company with immediate effect.
Rhys Cathan Davies, aged 42, is, or has been, a director or partner of the following companies and partnerships during the previous five years:
Current:
China Growth Opportunities Limited
Damille Partners
Damille Partners Limited
Damille Investments Limited
Glendower Capital Limited
Glendower Partners Limited
Hallwood Investments Limited
OSP Limited
Sports Brands Corporation Sarl
Past:
Agenda Television Limited
Broighter Capital Sarl
Glendower Opportunity Partners II
Heblerb Limited
Interactive Rights Management Limited
The Local Radio Company PLC
Magnolia Petroleum plc
New Fulcrum Investment Trust PLC
Sanoodi Limited
SBC Management Sarl
The Television Corporation Limited
Tinopolis PLC
Wightman Cup Limited
Rhys Davies was a director and deputy chairman of New Fulcrum Investment Trust plc when that company entered into a members' voluntary liquidation. New Fulcrum Investment Trust plc completed a members' voluntary (solvent) liquidation. Rhys Davies was the appointee of Hallwood Investments Limited, which was New Fulcrum's largest shareholder, from 10 May 2005 until its dissolution on 9 April 2007. New Fulcrum, which was formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange, returned approximately £41.3m to its shareholders in 2005.
Rhys Davies was also a director of Heblerb Limited which went into a members' voluntary liquidation in 2005. Heblerb was a wholly-owned intermediate holding company of New Fulcrum Investment Trust plc.
Rhys Davies was a non-executive director Caiman Technologies Limited when that company entered into a creditors' voluntary liquidation on 11 September 2002 and was dissolved on 2 October 2003. The deficit to unsecured creditors was £79,303. Caiman Technologies Limited was a venture capital backed company that failed to secure further financing.
Brett Lance Miller, aged 42, is, or has been, a director or partner of the following companies and partnerships during the previous five years:
Current:
China Growth Opportunities Limited
China Metal Packaging Group Company Limited
Damille Partners
Damille Partners Limited
Damille Investments Limited
Globo plc
Pactolus Hungarian Property plc
Stakeholders' Momentum Investment Trust plc West China Cement Limited
Past:
Gledhow Investments plc
Ruegg & Co Limited
Ramanan Raghavendran, aged 41, is, or has been, a director or partner of the following companies and partnerships during the previous five years:
Current:
Netscribes, Ltd.
Symphony Services, Inc.
Venture Infotek, Ltd.
Synergies Casting, Ltd.
Essel Shyam, Ltd.
Ocimum BioSolutions, Ltd.
Kejriwal Stationery Holdings, Ltd.
ConnectCapital Holdings, Ltd
TH Lee Putnam Fund Advisors, LLC
Kubera Cross-Border Fund, Ltd.
Kubera Partners, LLC
Past:
Edelweiss Capital, Ltd
NEW, Inc.
SPi, B.V.
ClickTactics, Inc.
There are no other matters which are required to be announced under paragraph (g) of Schedule 2 of the AIM Rules.
Enquiries:
EIH plc Rhys Davies / Brett Miller
+41 (0)796200215 / +44 (0)7770447338
Singer Capital Markets Limited James Maxwell
+44 (0)20 3205 7500