Merlin Diamonds CEO eyes bigger stake in Innopac
Joseph Gutnick intends to continue buying firm's shares
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Joseph Gutnick intends to continue buying firm's shares
Maria Mala
14 February 2013
Merlin Diamonds chairman and CEO Joseph Gutnick is looking to buy more shares in Innopac Holdings, even after recently boosting his stake.
He had increased his stake in the Singapore Exchange (SGX) mainboard-listed investment holding and management company to 10.31 per cent from 6.87 per cent on Feb 6. Following his initial purchase of 200 million shares at a price of $0.20 each on Feb 5, Mr Gutnick acquired another 100 million shares at $0.20 each in Innopac the next day.
This came after Innopac announced on Jan 31 that it was making a takeover bid for Merlin Diamonds, a diamond mining and exploration company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).
"I've been looking for shares and it became available. I like the company and it may take over the company that I'm involved in. So I thought it'd be appropriate that I buy shares in Innopac," Mr Gutnick said in an interview with The Business Times. "If the right amount of shares become available at the right time, yes, I intend to continue to buy shares in Innopac. It just depends on various circumstances and I'll just decide at the moment," added the Melbourne-based mining investor.
The takeover, Mr Gutnick believes, will benefit Merlin Diamonds.
"It opens markets up for us in Asia and also gives us extra funds if necessary because it's a cashed-up company. I think the future of the finance world is in Asia and it's good for Merlin to have a base in Asia," he said. "A lot of people today are buying diamonds because of investment and you find that more in China and other Asian countries."
Mr Gutnick hopes to see the takeover bid reach completion in two to three months' time.
When the takeover is completed, Mr Gutnick said Singapore will have another thing to boast about.
"There's a shortage of diamond supply. The old mines are depleting and there's no new mines that have been found. Merlin will be, in the not-too-distant future, the only diamond mine in Asia, and the only diamond mine producer will be in Singapore. So it will become something that every Singaporean should be proud of, that they will own a diamond mine," he said.
When SGX and ASX were in merger talks, Mr Gutnick was one of those in favour of it because he believed that Singapore is an attractive place for an investor or a public company to have exposure to.
He said: "Singapore is becoming an investment haven for the rest of the world. Singapore is a much bigger market as there's more money coming here from all parts of the world, whether it's China or Europe.
"Singapore has a lot of financial muscle that Australia doesn't have. Australia is a rich resource country with iron, ore, coal and gold, but it needs investors and money to develop these assets and that's why people turn to places like Singapore for investments."
Moreover, Mr Gutnick sees the lack of language barrier here as another plus point.
"In China, I need an interpreter and communication is very difficult, whereas Singapore is so close to Australia and English is a common language so you can express yourself, you can tell your story."
With his stake in Innopac and interest in other investment opportunities here, Mr Gutnick is thinking of moving to Singapore. "I'm looking seriously at renting a place here. I'm very happy to be coming to Singapore and being part of the investment community."