Michael Ashcroft's Company E-com and the Government of Belize signed an agreement at the Central Bank in Belize City this evening. We can't say what is in the final draft, but the agreement is modeled off the one we've been covering for the past week, where Ashcroft's Company E-com, formerly Pillow Talk, would buy 15% of government's shares in BTL and get a certain amount of control of the company. Government will make concessions to Ashcroft and in exchange he will drop arbitration proceedings against GOB in London.
At this point, because government is being secretive about the signing, it is unclear just who signed and what is in the fine print. Again, we have yet to see the final, modified agreement and can claim no certain knowledge of it until we see it. But it doesn't seem unreasonable to believe that is built off the E-com agreement we showed you yesterday. And as we reported that gives Ashcroft 15% of government's shares for a cheaper price, 24 cents less per share than he sold them to the same government 15 months ago.
On that agreement (and we understand this feature has been retained in the final draft) the $12 plus million tax debt owed by the Belize Bank would be "set off" against certain monies in dividends and other considerations that Ashcroft claims the government owes him. That means that the much discussed tax arrears owed by the Belize Bank would not be paid into the treasury but written off the books as a settlement of other debts government supposedly has to Ashcroft.
And while that is one controversial part of the deal, government will try to turn it into a save, by making Sunrise, the group of BTL managers and employees, take control of the company. Under that plan, Sunrise would have to buy 37% of government's B and C shares, 30% of Prosser's C shares, and Prosser's Special Share. This would give Sunrise control of the majority of C shares, equivalent to 4 of the company directors and the Special Share would give them another 2 directors, totaling 6 of the company's 8 directors. All told that would leave Sunrise with controlling share holdings and controlling the board of BTL.
But all that is predicated on Prosser's readiness to sell his shares. His representatives reportedly told the Sunrise Group "yes" on the weekend but today there is very different news coming from Miami. Prosser's public relations people claim that government's attorney in Miami, Hunton and Williams, today filed papers in Southern Florida's Federal Court indicating that government is willing to comply with the Florida Judge's March 11th ruling. This would mean that Prosser would re-take control of BTL immediately. This was flatly denied today by senior government officials. Prosser's people swear by it and claim they will provide proof with certified court papers tomorrow. There's no way to say how this possible development squares with the Ashcroft/GOB signing today and for the time being, this may have to be filed under the thoroughly unexplainable.
