Settlement in the US costs Nyrstar owner Trafigura 51 million euros

Trafigura is currently embroiled in another scandal. In this article, De Tijd's Bert Broens states that 'The Singaporean commodities trader Trafigura is paying 55 million dollars (51 million euros) in a settlement with the American regulator CFTC for alleged fraud and manipulation.' The allegations against Trafigura include the use of non-public information for its petrol trading activities between 2014 and 2019, as well as the manipulation of a benchmark for fuel to enhance its market position.

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In the Nyrstar case, where a number of minority shareholders are also suing Trafigura for alleged fraud and manipulation, Nyrstar, after six years of adamant denial, has recently been forced to reluctantly admit that the Belgian regulator @FSMA is individually suing not only the company, but also all directors who participated in the allegedly fraudulent restructuring of the company in 2019 for market manipulation and deception. The final ruling from the Sanctions Committee is awaited. This will initiate the process in this unfortunate saga, from which a number of Belgian establishment figures have been benefiting for years – including lawyers, supervisory directors, advisors and consultants. Nyrstar NV has recently engaged a leading corporate communications agency to streamline its hitherto misleading communications to the market. It remains to be seen whether this will result in a continuation of the deception or more open and transparent communications, where past mistakes are no longer concealed.

It is noteworthy that five years ago, our syndicate had to decline a similar proposal from the same agency due to cost considerations. It is now apparent that Nyrstar NV does possess the necessary financial resources. This is a matter of concern, given the widely held belief that the Board of Directors has been utilising the limited resources of the company for their own benefit, often to the detriment of the company and its minority shareholders. It is under the Limited Recourse Loan facility, and therefore bound by the interests of reference shareholder Trafigura.

This ongoing pattern of misusing company assets appears to be perpetuating itself, once again to the detriment of minority shareholders.

I would like to take this opportunity to appeal to the Financial Services and Markets Authority to swiftly issue a ruling from the Sanctions Committee. This will ensure that all service providers can no longer use the argument of alleged innocence as a defence. I would also like to make an equally urgent appeal to the service provider sector (business lawyers, consultants, investment bankers and the media) to apply the current Corporate Governance and KYC legislation not only to the letter but also to the spirit.

Go to original article 'De Tijd'

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