FIMBank takes control of London Forfaiting Company plc

FIMBANK will formally 'walk in' to the offices of London Forfaiting Company plc tomorrow after it acquired over 65 per cent of the company last week.

Addressing the media on Friday, FIMBank executives expressed satisfaction with the acquisition, with president Claude L. Roy saying the bank would have taken five years to get to where it is today.

He described the bank as one specialising in niche markets with LFC achieving break-even by year's end and starting to make a positive contribution to the bank next year.

Executive vice-president Magrith Lutschg-Emmenegger said the acquisition will enable FIMBank to expand much faster, widening the expertise in forfaiting that was already in FIMBank.

LFC is to become a FIMBank subsidiary and is to undergo a major restructuring, disposing of non-strategic offices, delisting from the London Stock Exchange and moving many administrative operations to Malta.

FIMBank said it would call an AGM if it did not get the 90 per cent of the acceptances of its July 22 cash offer that values LFC at £31 million.

Among those present at Friday's press conference were FIMBank chairman Najeeb H.M. Al-Saleh, director Francis J. Vassallo, general manager at head office Raymond Busuttil and financial controller Rueben Xuereb.