Application cheques were in the mail for ASX-listed Story-I's recent $2.1 million placement but the company has refunded investors after cancelling the raising.
Application funds were in the mail for ASX-listed Story-I's recent $2.1 million placement but the company has refunded investors after cancelling the raising.
It came as a director resigned, and followed an ASX query and share disposal.
Story-I Limited sells Apple products in Indonesia but its registered office is in Leederville.
On Monday, the company revealed a $2.1 million share placement announced earlier in March would be reversed, while director Chek Ming Cheng had resigned from the board.
The move follows a flurry of activity for the business.
Mr Cheng sold 500,000 shares in Story-I on March 8, a release to markets said.
That earned him $12,470; and left him with no holdings in the company.
The following day, Story-I responded to an ASX query after the company’s share price jumped 42 per cent to 4 cents per share, and trade volume rose significantly.
Story-I said it was not aware of any information which it had not announced to the market.
One week later, on March 16, Story-I said it had successfully raised $2.1 million in a placement of 92 million shares.
That would enable it to fastrack expansion of stores, build an online platform, and provide working capital.
The company said it was a 25 per cent discount to its 15 day volume weighted price, at 2.3 cents per share.
Sydney-based EverBlu Capital had led the raising and earned a 6 per cent fee.
But by Monday the 29th, the placement was scrapped and all application funds received were to be returned.
The board made the move because the company was suspended from trading by the ASX pending responses to ASX queries, it said.
“Despite the cancellation of the placement, we are continuing with our plans to grow our physical store network and further the development of our online sales platform that will address the retail, education and enterprise markets,” executive director Michael Chan said.
“We are optimistic that business activity will continue to improve in light of the easing COVID-19 restrictions and the ongoing mass vaccination program being rolled out across Indonesia.
“Story-I is presently progressing several exciting growth initiatives and looks forward to updating investors in due course.”
EverBlu will be given a retainer of $10,000 a month, the release said.
A representative of Story-I said the company was unable to comment further, while EverBlu had not responded to a request for comment.
Mr Cheng joined the board in August 2020, and was project director at Leeka Group, a Melbourne property business.
Business News understands he was a representative of a large shareholder which had been reducing its holdings in recent weeks.
Top shareholder Harry Vui Khiun Lee has been selling down his stake, from 19.4 per cent of the register to 5 per cent.
It is unclear if Mr Cheng represented Mr Lee or another shareholder.
In August, Story-I told markets its auditors Bentleys had applied to ASIC to resign as auditors.
Story-I said it was to centralise audit, registered office and company secretary roles into Perth.
Stantons International replaced Bentleys as auditor and signed the annual report weeks later.
