89pc take-up for Trafalgar

BELEAGUERED British conglomerate Trafalgar House has announced an 89 per cent take-up of the GBP204.5 million (about HK$2.3 billion) one-for-two rights issue offered to shareholders last month.

The remaining rump of the 38.8 million shares is to be placed with Swiss Bank Corp (SBC). The bank has a put option arrangement with Hongkong Land to supply an additional 67 million shares, or 75 million shares adjusting for the rights issue, representing 7.1 per cent of Trafalgar's stock.

Expectations are that SBC will sell the shares to Hongkong Land for about 78 pence a share, having bought the rump at 75 pence.