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SINGAPORE – Retail investors in the Malaysian group Hyflux, who are at risk of losing most of their investment in the water treatment company, rallied on Saturday for a rally in the city, urging the government to protect them .
The 15 hours A gathering in a park in central Singapore attracted more than 200 people, mostly seniors who invested their savings in Hyflux stocks and bonds. The rally was organized by one of the investors and the news was relayed by local news and social media during the week.
As part of Hyflux's proposed debt restructuring plan in February, approximately 34,000 individual investors would lose close to 90% of their funds.
In addition, the Public Utilities Board of Singapore announced this month that it would seize the flagship desalination plant of Hyflux without payment if the troubled company does not could not meet its contractual obligations. The Indonesian restructuring partner of Hyflux, a consortium led by the Salim group, hinted that he could pull out of the rescue operation.
Creditors must vote on the restructuring plan on April 5th.
This gathering seems to be the first event of this type organized by the country in 10 years. Eugene Tan, an badociate professor of law at Singapore Management University, discussed a similar event in 2008 after the collapse of Lehman Brothers that affected the debt-related securities offered by local banks.
Saturday's rally was held at Hong Lim Park, the only place in Singapore where public events are tolerated.
"The government maintains strict restrictions on the right to peaceful badembly through the law of public order," Human Rights Watch said. The hour-long rally ended peacefully.
The main speaker was the social activist Tan Kin Lian. Tan stated that he was not a Hyflux investor, but that he had been invited to speak because he often posted his views on the Hyflux saga on his site Web.
Tan had been CEO of a local insurer and had been running for the country's presidency primarily as a ceremonial in 2011. He also supported local investors during the Lehman crisis, according to local media reports.
Investors trusted Hyflux in part because the company "operates water treatment plants and these facilities are strategic national badets," Tan said in his speech.
The loss of Hyflux in its power generation business resulted from an increase in the government's capacity on the market, which eventually led to a drop in electricity prices, he said.
"I want to appeal to the government," he said. "Take responsability." Tan urged the government to "pay a reasonable price" for the desalination plant, to the applause of the crowd.
The Public Utilities Board had previously stated that the possible seizure of the desalination plant was intended to preserve national water security. The current valuation of the plant is "negative", according to the board.
Hyflux operates two of Singapore's three desalination plants which together can cover up to 30% of the country's water needs.
A male investor, who spoke after Tan, argued that investors are not informed of important information in a timely manner, which prevents them from deciding how to vote the restructuring plan on April 5.
Investors approached by Nikkei have expressed different points of view. A 65-year-old man who invested S $ 20,000 ($ 14,750) said he "never thought about the danger because Hyflux is a water company."
But another man in his 60s who invested $ 20,000 SG said he preferred the painful restructuring plan because he wanted a refund, even if it only represents 10% of the capital.
A man in his 50s who invested $ 18,000 SG said his greatest hope was the continuity of the business. If Hyflux continues and rebounds, investors will have a chance to recover high badet values by holding shares, he said.
The organizers of the rally have placed signs in the park to express their concerns. One of them read: "Hyflux BOD [board of directors]where is your consciousness? "Some have been written in Chinese.
The Securities Investors Association of Singapore, which supports ordinary investors, has taken into account the concerns of these individuals in its statements and letters to Hyflux and the Public Utilities Board.
With its water treatment and desalination technologies, Hyflux was once a flagship company in the resource-poor state. In the run-up to the April 5 creditors' meeting, the local media is closely following the current restructuring plan. The Business Times newspaper published last weekend a two-page timeline of Hyflux since its IPO in 2001.
Attention is also focused on keeping the consortium led by Salim in the rescue contract. Without Salim's help, the alternative risks being liquidation. If the consortium abandons the bailout or the creditors reject the plan, Hyflux should find another sponsor before the end of the court's debt moratorium, which falls on April 30th.
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