BOSVG shares undersubscribed

Shares in the Bank of St Vincent and the Grenadines (BOSVG) are still available for purchase by the public as the Intial Public Offer (IPO) which opened on January 7, 2013 was undersubscribed.{{more}}

Two million ordinary shares in the BOSVG were put up for sale using the platform of the Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange (ECSE). The shares were owned by the government of St Vincent and the Grenadines and are being sold as part of the government’s programme of divestment in the Bank.

A release from the BOSVG said as at January 25, 2013, the Government received $12,361,810 from the sale of the shares. A total of 1,632 applicants purchased 1,430,765 shares at the offer price of $8.64 per share.

“The remaining shares are available for purchase through the BOSVG, a licensed Broker Dealer of the ECSE. Persons wishing to purchase shares should contact the Bank where a registered representative will outline the process and provide details on the offer.

Individuals are required to provide a valid picture ID, e.g. passport, national ID card, or driver’s license, while companies will need to provide their company registration documents,” the release said.

The 2,000,000 shares form 20 per cent of the shareholding of the Bank.

This is the third phase of the divestment of shares, which began in November 2010 with the selling of 51 per cent of the National Commercial Bank shares to St Lucia based Eastern Caribbean Financial Holding Co (ECFH) and the sale of nine per cent between the National Insurance Services (NIS) and the bank’s staff — 8.1 and 0.9 per cent respectively. The government is retaining 20 per cent shareholding in the BOSVG.

The minimum being offered to any one investor is 50 shares or units and they can invest in multiples of five thereafter.