The story appears on

Page B8

December 17, 2009

GET this page in PDF

Free for subscribers

View shopping cart

Related News

HomeBusinessEconomy

ADIA takes Citigroup to court


THE Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund is vowing to fight for its "legal rights" after filing a claim against Citigroup over its US$7.5 billion investment in the bank.

A spokesman for the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority said yesterday ADIA would not comment further, citing "binding confidentiality obligations." It also declined to provide a copy of the complaint.

Citigroup Inc said on Tuesday that ADIA has filed a claim against the bank seeking to either terminate a deal to buy US$7.5 billion worth of its stock or receive damages of more than US$4 billion.

ADIA, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world, invested US$7.5 billion in Citigroup in November 2007, offering the New York-based bank needed capital to offset big losses from mortgages and other investments.

The fund received equity units that paid a high annual dividend. The units were to be converted into Citigroup common shares at a price of up to US$37.24 a share between March 15, 2010, and September 15, 2011, making the fund one of Citi's largest shareholders with a 4.9 percent stake.

But the bank proved to be among the hardest hit by the credit crisis and rising loan defaults, and received US$45 billion in aid from the United States government.

Since the end of November 2007, Citi shares have tumbled 89 percent from the US$33 range to less than US$4. At US$37.24 per share, the conversion price would amount to more than 10 times Citi's closing stock price on Tuesday of US$3.56.

ADIA's arbitration claim, filed in New York, alleges "fraudulent misrepresentations" over the sale.

 

Copyright 漏 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.

娌叕缃戝畨澶 31010602000204鍙

Email this to your friend