Eatonfield shares suspended
THE property company founded by Secret Millionaire Rob Lloyd has had its shares suspended “pending clarification of the group’s financial position”.
Eatonfield, which was listed on the Alternative Investment Market, has been in financial difficulty since September 2008 and the onset of the banking crisis.
Lloyd had subsequently attempted to sell off assets including his Haycroft Farm racing stables to shore up the company, and it has limped along with the support of its bank for the past nine months as it has atttempted to sell off other company assets, including two development sites in Wales.
However, last week the company announced that the expected sale of these two sites to Trillandium LLP had fallen through at the 11th hour due to what it described as “a number of changes that were subesquently requested at a late stage in negotiations”.
The firm said that although it “continues in discussions with senior lenders with a view to establishing whether there is a viable way forward for the business”, these talks were likely to extend beyond the end of May 31 when its working capital facility had essentially run out. As a result, it said that it had no option but to suspend its shares.
Prior to their suspension, the shares were trading at 0.16p, giving the company a market cap of £580,000. Around 24% of the shares were in the hands of Lloyd himself and a further 4.37% were owned by his son, Jason.
Its joint venture development partner for the Welsh sites, Jenard Properties, owned 25% of the stock which it had accruedaround a year ago in return for a number of short-term loans.
