Lm2 million Globe Financial Management private placement

by Anthony Manduca

Globe Financial Management Ltd have successfully completed a private placement of five million shares in the company representing a value of Lm2m.

The company's shares have been oversubscribed by institutional, corporate as well as private investors.

The company was advised by PricewaterhouseCoopers, Fenech & Fenech Advocates and Globe Financial Stockbrokers Limited. The company has also, with effect from 27 July, changed its status to a plc.

The new shareholding of Globe Financial Management Limited is as follows:

27,000,000, 77.1 per cent - Globe Financial Investments

3,000,000, 8.6 per cent - James Blake

5,000,000, 14.3 per cent - new investors

In order to address significant group relationship and corporate strategy issues within the Globe Organisation, James Blake, formerly managing director of Globe Financial Management plc the flagship company of the organisation, has been appointed Deputy Chairman - Corporate Strategy.

Mr Blake will be taking on a wider corporate role and will be responsible for group corporate strategy. In this capacity he will also concentrate on core group issues in order to ensure that the synergies and convergences that arise between the various component companies are harnessed to the advantage of the organisation as a whole.

Mr Blake brings to the role a long personal association with the Globe Group, having been involved in the operation virtually since its inception.

"With his experience and in-depth knowledge of the details of the

overall operation, together with a full grasp of the goals and objectives of the various group companies, James will be spearheading the organisation's continued development into a leading one-stop-shop in the financial services sector," Globe chairman Christopher Pace told his board on announcing the change.

Dr Richard Galea-Debono will be taking over the role of managing director and chief executive officer of Globe Financial Management Limited.

Dr Galea-Debono, a lawyer by profession, was chairman of Telemalta Corporation between 1992 and 1995 and one of the founding directors of HSBC Life. Dr Galea-Debono has been associated with financial services since the inception of the first offshore legislation and brings a wealth of administrative and organisational experience with him which will add value to the Globe set up.

Globe Organisation is made up of a number of companies, six of which operate within the financial services sector.

Through the services offered by these companies Globe aims to address all clients' financial needs.

The appointments will come into effect on 1 September.