The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), says it is working with Gold Coast Fund Management (GCFM) to secure a lasting solution to its liquidity challenges in the mutual interest of all stakeholders.
The Commission was, therefore, reviewing the proposals the GCMF had submitted to it in a bid to replace its Structured Finance product so that it would be able to meet all its payments and obligations to customers and investors.
These were contained in a statement, signed for the Reverend Daniel Ogbarmey-Tetteh, the Director-General of SEC, and issued to the media, on Tuesday.
It said it was in constant engagement with the GCFM, the largest fund manager in the Asset Management Industry, over the crisis, while it continued to receive petitions from aggrieved customers for adjudication.
“The SEC is presently reviewing the viability of the proposals and wishes to assure all interested parties that it is doing so in the interest of investor protection,” the regulator said.
However, it would continue to investigate complaints and apply regulatory sanctions should Gold Coast be found to have breached any provisions under the Securities Industry Act 2016 (Act 929).
The SEC has directed GCFM not to receive new funds from the public until it has settled all the outstanding investments of clients and investors.
Alternatively, GCFM can reach mutually agreed settlement terms with the investors and clients.
“The Commission shall continue to apprise the general and investing public on any further developments,” it said.
“The general public is also advised to contact the commission on its Toll free number: 0800-100-065 or main line: 0302768970-2 for any further clarification.”
Meanwhile, the GCFM in an earlier statement, explained that it had complied with the SEC to stop taking any new investment funds.
It said it was collaborating with the SEC to roll out what it terms, the “Cardinal Fund”, to replace the popular Structured Finance (SF) product.
It explained: “The Cardinal Fund comes with a bond and equity offer – the bond portion of the fund will allow customers to continue to earn a predetermined return without violating the recent directives from the commission”.
It was set to deliver a prospectus and related documentation to the SEC by the end of April 2019, it said.
The Company expressed optimism that the approval of its Cardinal Fund would provide a road map for other struggling fund management companies seeking solutions to their liquidity challenges.
“Once GCFM is able to transition its customers to the Cardinal Fund, it will seek to raise long term capital to buy its bonds back from customers who wish to redeem their investments”.
The Company’s liquidity challenges result from debts owed to it by government contractors who are yet to be paid by the Ministry of Finance; as well as locked up funds with other financial houses.
It has said it was working assiduously to retrieve the funds to be able to bounce back.
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Source: GNA
