Trading in the stock has been suspended since March 2018

 

SINGAPORE Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) has directed the delisting of YuuZoo Networks Group, which will take effect at 9 am on Friday (Jul 12).

 

The company was previously known as YuuZoo Corporation.

 

Shares of YuuZoo have been suspended from trading since March 2018, and the company has not released any financial report since Feb 14, 2019, SGX RegCo said in a bourse filing on Monday.

 

&ldquo The company has not since then submitted any acceptable nor satisfactory proposals to SGX RegCo for the purpose of trading resumption,&rdquo the frontline regulator added.

 

&ldquo Based on public records, the company is dissolved.&rdquo

 

Former YuuZoo chief executive James Matthew Somasundram was in June fined S$35,000 for negligence in relation to overstating revenue.

 

Warrants of arrest have been issued against four other individuals allegedly involved in the matter. The quartet are currently out of Singapore and have refused to return, the Singapore Police Force said in February.

 

They are then-chief executive and chairman Thomas Zilliacus, then-chief financial officer Michael Parker, as well as Anthony Williams and Ozi Amanat, who were independent directors at the time.

 

An Interpol Red Notice has also been issued against Zilliacus, who made headlines last year when he entered into &ndash and subsequently withdrew from &ndash the race to purchase English Premier League football club Manchester United.

Four other YuuZoo officers remain at large

 

FORMER YuuZoo Corporation chief executive James Matthew Somasundram was fined S$35,000 for negligence in relation to overstating revenue of S$13.3 million for the first quarter of 2016&rsquo s results.

 

Somasundram pled guilty to the second of four charges relating to the Securities and Futures Act for misleading financial statements. The other three charges of overstating revenue for different financial statements were taken into account during his sentencing.

 

An extension to Thursday (Jun 27) was granted to Somasundram in paying the fine. Failure to pay the fine would result in three months imprisonment.

 

Somasundram was appointed CEO of Yuuzoo in October 2015, before stepping down one month later for health reasons.

 

&ldquo It is undisputed that the accused was the CEO of YuuZoo and was in position to make enquiries on the veracity of the FY2016 results, but instead relied on the board of directors,&rdquo said District Judge Wong Peck during sentencing.

 

She noted that Somasundram was made aware of issues raised by YuuZoo&rsquo s auditor Moore Stephens.

 

The company, which is now known as YuuZoo Networks Group, is listed on the Singapore Exchange mainboard. Several of its quarterly reports released between 2015 and 2016 were allegedly misleading, as investigations found they overstated revenue by US$4.6 million to US$18.8 million.

 

Shares of YuuZoo have remained suspended since March 2018. The company disclosed that it was under investigation in April that year by the Commercial Affairs Department for possible breaches of the Securities and Futures Act.

 

Four other YuuZoo officers remain at large, including former executive chairman Thomas Zilliacus, chief financial officer Michael Parker, and independent directors Anthony Williams and Ozi Amanat. Warrants of arrest have been issued against them, and Zilliacus has an additional Interpol red notice issued against him.

 

 

Thomas Zilliacus, better known in Singapore as the former chairman of YuuZoo Corp, has thrown in his hat to buy Manchester United.

 

In an interview with UK paper The Mirror, Zillacus outlined a &ldquo fan ownership&rdquo model, which he says will be &ldquo appealing&rdquo to the supporters of one of the world&rsquo s most famous soccer club.

 

&rdquo Any sport club ultimately should belong to its fans. The current development, where billionaire sheiks and oligarchs take over clubs and control them as their personal playgrounds is not a healthy trend,&rdquo he says.

 

NYSE-listed Manchester United has a market value of just below US$4 billion.

 

In his proposed bid, Zilliacus plans to pay half the amount needed to buy over the club. He will then ask fans to chip in the other half.

 

Man U, as the Old Trafford-based club is popularly known, is one of the most popular sports brands in the world and reportedly has a fan base of more than 600 million worldwide.

According to Zillacus, if every fan chips in, they would be paying less than US$6 each. &ldquo My bid is built on equality with the fans,&rdquo he says.

 

Zilliacus proposes to finance half the cost and ask the fans to pay the other half, which works out to less than US$3 each if each of them participates.

 

&ldquo Each fan who joins will have access to an app which the fan, from anywhere in the world, can use to participate and cast his vote when deciding on footballing matters relating to the club. No decisions will be taken that are not supported by a majority of the fan base,&rdquo he tells The Mirror.

 

According to The Mirror, Zilliacus, has been chairman of Finland&rsquo s 32-times football champions HJK. He is also owner of Finland&rsquo s 6-times ice hockey champions Jokerit.

 

The Glazers family, current owners of Man U, are reportedly asking for £ 6 billion.

 

According to The Mirror, interests have been indicated by Jim Ratcliffe, founder of chemicals group INEOS, and UK&rsquo s richest man. Qatari businessman Sheikh Jassim is keen as well.

 

Zilliacus, who used to head corporate communications for Nokia, founded YuuZoo Corp and listed the company on the SGX back in 2014.

 

He quit in 2018 following probes by the Commercial Affairs Department, &ldquo caused by a complaint from an unknown party&rdquo .

 

&ldquo While he is convinced nobody in the Company has done anything wrong, he has informed the Board he believes the honourable thing to do is to step aside while the investigation is ongoing,&rdquo said YuuZoo in its April 27 announcement.

 

SHAREHOLDERS of social media company YuuZoo Networks Group - which has been under investigation by the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) for possible breaches of the Securities and Futures Act since 2018 - has requested the company board to call for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) " as soon as possible" , YuuZoo Shareholders Association (YSHA) announced on Monday (Jan 17).

 

In its letter, the YSHA called for the board meeting to get the company' s trading suspension lifted, elect a new board, and restart operations. Previously named YuuZoo Corporation, the company has been under mandatory suspension since March 19, 2018.

 

The Singapore Exchange-listed company last requested to lift its trading halt on Oct 24, 2019, according to regulatory filings. It was YuuZoo' s third such request, stating that the suspension was " unjustified and deeply damaging to YuuZoo shareholders" .

 

The association, which is open to all share and option holders, also raised the issue of electing a new board, restarting operations, possible refinancing and changing the company name.

 

" In view of the travel restrictions that still are in place because of the global pandemic, YSHA wants the EGM to be held as an online event open to all shareholders," it said.

 

YSHA members are from Europe, USA, Australia and Asia, representing more than 1/3 of outstanding shares and options.