The status of special off-market trades involving ailing brokerage Tricom remains uncertain after the ASX announced special crossings had been unwound at Tricom's request.
The ASX today sent a circular to market participants informing them that the "off-market special crossings'' had been cancelled at Tricom's request.
As reported by BusinessDay, the special crossings, conducted on Friday, involved sizeable share blocks of several listed companies, and were related to the collapse of Melbourne-based brokerage, Opus Prime Group.
They included 20 million Babcock & Brown Wind, 10 million Everest Babcock, 10 million Hedley Leisure and Gaming units, 7 million Arrow Energy, 9 million Babcock Capital shares, 10 million Western Areas and a handful of smaller parcels of other company shares.
A spokeswoman for Tricom said the special crossings were cancelled because the stock transfer was effected another way.
''Tricom took action to ensure all clients potentially affected by the Opes issue now have their stock back,'' she said, without elaborating.
The ASX said its primary focus now is ensuring the listed companies involved in the crossings ''are aware of the cancellations and can factor this information into their disclosure to the market.'' The statement said the ASX plans to review the circumstances of the original crossing.
Among the companies involved in the crossings, Hedley Leisure's shares remain suspended. The company said today it is awaiting more information on the special crossings.
Tricom's transactions came several days after trading activities of Opes Prime were suspended, pending investigations by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
Opes Prime was placed into receivership and administration on Thursday, owing about $1.05 billion to secured creditors including the ANZ Bank and Merrill Lynch. Some 1200 investors, though, face losses amounting to possibly hundreds of millions of dollars.
One senior equities trader who didn't want to be named said ANZ Bank, the major lender to both Tricom and Opes Prime, is believed to be behind the cancellations of the special crossings.
ANZ doesn't want to contend with the failures of both Tricom and Opes, both of which owe it millions, the trader said.
The cancellations would allow ANZ to simplify the liquidation process, the equities trader said.
Apart from the confusion triggered by the trade reversals, there's bound to be wider implications for investors trying to work out whether recent share falls mark a buying opportunity, or more reason to stay out of the market.
The Opes Prime collapse has "really created a loss of confidence in the market," said the trader. "Regulators really need to step in, whether it's the ASX or ASIC."
ANZ Bank officials were not immediately available for comment.
BusinessDay, with Vanessa Burrow, The Age
