Companies

TransCentury puts off special meeting meant to discuss delisting plan

Investment firm TransCentury #ticker:TCL has cancelled an extraordinary general meeting to consider its proposal to delist from the Nairobi Securities Exchange and which was to be held Thursday.

The company did not give the specific reasons for the decision which will extend its trading days on the Nairobi bourse.

TransCentury says it needs to exit the NSE to access new capital from private equity funds that will only invest in it as a non-listed business.

“Notice is hereby given that the virtual extraordinary general meeting (EGM) of TransCentury Plc scheduled for Thursday, July 30, 2020 at 10:00 am has been cancelled,” the company said in a notice to shareholders.

“This is due to circumstances beyond the control of TransCentury and in view of this the board had found it necessary to reschedule the EGM and will be issuing a new notice after consulting with all relevant stakeholders.”

The resolution to delist the company will need the approval of most of the company’s shareholders to succeed.

Kenya's securities law says that a delisting resolution can be passed by a simple majority at a meeting where shareholders with a combined stake of at least 75 per cent are represented in person or through proxies.

Such a resolution can nonetheless be nullified if investors with a 10 percent equity or more vote against it.

The company plans to go back to trading on the over-the-counter (OTC) market once it exits the NSE.

TransCentury’s shares previously exchanged hands on the OTC exchange operated by Dyer & Blair Investment Bank from April 2009 until its listing on the NSE on July 14, 2011.

The OTC market has higher trading fees, reduced liquidity and less transparency compared to the NSE.