by Stacey Russell

THE TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO Stock Exchange could have kept the takeover war for Barbados Shipping & Trading (BS&T) on fair ground by rejecting the sale of shares to Neal & Massy at a higher value than the company had offered Barbadian shareholders.

This is the latest contention by Colin Brewer, co-leader of the local IPL consortium that was once in the running for a stake in BS&T.

He told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY in a interview last Friday that the Barbados Securities Commission (BSC) was constrained by inconsistent trading rules between Barbados and Trinidad, adding that resorting to the courts was the best option at the time.

"I think they [BSC] probably found themselves in a bind. They would not have any control over the Trinidad exchange. Perhaps the Trinidad Exchange should have been fair to them [BSC] in this matter before they allowed the additional shares to be sold to Neal & Massy," Brewer said.

"The Trinidad exchange didn't do that, so the Barbados Securities Commission was left with a fate to complete . . . . Those transactions on the Trinidad exchange defeated a fair competition for BS&T between two suitors who had the financial strength to complete the bid . . . and this distorted the market."

Last week the deal was virtually stalemated by a BSC cease-trading order barring Neal & Massy from taking up and paying for BS&T shares. It is not likely to be lifted until current litigation determines whether there were discrepancies in the Neal & Massy and ANSA McAL takeover bids.

More than 80 per cent of BS&T shares have been tendered to Neal & Massy.

Brewer said he expected the courts to "act promptly" and consider "principles of equity" in resolving the BS&T transaction.