Increases Equity Stake in GZL

10 Mar 2008 07:00

Et-china.com International Holdings10 March 2008 For Immediate Release 10 March 2008 ET-CHINA.COM INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LIMITED ("Et-china", "the Group" or "the Company") Increases Equity Stake in GZL Et-china.com International Holdings Limited, the leading travel services groupin the fast growing region of South China, is increasing its equity holding inGZL, its subsidiary which is the largest travel package holiday providers inSouth China. Under the executed agreements, five senior executives of GZL are exchangingtheir entire shareholdings in GZL for shares in Et-china plus cash. For theirGZL shares, valued at RMB 10,756,672 (£755,384*), the executives will receivethe equivalent of 78% of their worth in Et-china shares with the balance incash. This will involve the issue of 667,550 new ordinary shares at the averageclosing price of the last 30 trading days from 5 February 2008 and RMB 2,322,336(£163,085) in cash. The 5 key executives represent the management team responsible for thesuccessful development the GZL business over many years including the veteranChairman and President, Mr. Hong Zheng, Executive Vice President of Operations,Mr. Jianxu Lu and Vice President and Deputy Managing Director of OutboundTravel, Mr. Shaodong Zhu. Their holdings in Et-china will be subject to stagedlock-in agreements. On completion of the deal the Group will increase its holding in GZL by 3.32% to53.95%. Et-china's recent two trading updates highlighted GZL's rapid growth,increasing its net revenue in the 12 months to 31 December 2007 by 37.64%compared to the 2006 period. Matthew Ng, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented: "I believe thisrepresents a highly significant move as by swapping their entire holdings inGZL, the business they have built, for shares in the Group, these seniorexecutives as led by Mr Hong Zheng are demonstrating a strong long-termcommitment to Et-china and the combined business. " * Currency in this release is converted on the basis of GB£1 = RMB 14.24 - Ends - Contact details for enquiries: Et-china.com International Holdings Limited 0207 067 0700Matthew Ng, President and Chief ExecutiveIan Smith, Chairman Seymour Pierce, Nominated Adviser and Broker 0207 107 8000Mark Percy Weber Shandwick Financial 0207 067 0700Terry GarrettNick OborneStephanie BadjonatJohn Moriarty This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange