Trans-Island Traders’ announced plan to take control of AML Foods is off the table.
The board of Associated Bahamian Distillers and Brewers Ltd. (ABDAB) came out of Thursday’s board meeting excited about a proposal to get Trans-Island Traders’ 78 percent ownership of City Market parent Bahamas Supermarkets Limited (BSL), but strongly opposed to having any part in the acquisition of AML Foods.
The news came from Trans-Island Traders President Mark Finlayson, who explained the board’s position on the AML acquisition.
“Their reasoning was very straight forward,” Finlayson said. “They appreciate the fact that the $1.50 bid was made on prior information but given the fact that after January 31 a report of their latest numbers showed AML profits were down 64 percent, they felt very strongly that $1.50 was much too much at this stage.”
The bid Finlayson referred to was announced on January 31, for a 51 percent ownership stake in AML at $1.50 per share. Praising the wisdom of the ABDAB board, Finlayson, who has always maintained that it was important to Trans-Island that ABDAB’s shareholders were ‘on board’ deferred to their decision on the proposed AML takeover.
“As a result you will see that on Monday we are going to withdraw our Trans-Island Traders proposal to buy 51 percent of AML,” he said.
