Reuters: Private Equity: David Jones suitor's history of headlines

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David Jones suitor's history of headlines Jul 4th 2012, 16:16 By Simon Meads LONDON, July 4 | Wed Jul 4, 2012 12:16pm EDT LONDON, July 4 (Reuters) - John Edgar, the man behind a controversial aborted bid for Australia's No.2 department store chain, may be hard to track down, but he is no stranger to grabbing the headlines, having once claimed to sell the world's most expensive whisky. Edgar and his company EB Private Equity have gone to ground after withdrawing a A$1.65 billion ($1.7 billion) offer for David Jones amid a roller-coaster ride in the company's shares and a regulatory investigation. "Go as far as you can see; when you get there, you'll be able to see farther," is a quotation on EB's sparse website attributed to John Pierpoint Morgan, one of the founders of JPMorgan. But for people trying to find out about Edgar and EB, it's very difficult to see anything at all. Neither is registered with Britain's financial services watchdog, while the firm is not listed at either Companies House in Britain or the Jersey Financial Services Commission. Private equity data firm Preqin also has no reference to Edgar or EB, which press reports have linked to a back street address next door to a wig shop in northern English city Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Yet his elusiveness has not prevented EB's 42-year-old chairman from hitting the headlines before. Last year, the launch of Isabella's Islay by Edgar's Luxury Beverage Company Limited got tongues wagging in whisky circles. Despite a jaw-dropping price tag of $6.2 million a bottle, the company provided scant information on the provenance or age of the whisky presented in a diamond and ruby-encrusted white gold decanter. Accounts filed with Companies House for 2011, show a company with no assets, no profits and only 1 pound ($1.57) cash in the bank. The website for Isabella's Islay gives no contact details. There was no reply to an email requesting comment. The whisky was a follow-up to Edgar's halal creation Ruwa, billed as the most expensive non-alcoholic drink. It is uncertain whether either of these drinks was ever sold to customers, or even whether they were ever produced. Edgar is also a director of another British company - Motion in Motion Ultra Limited. No details can be found of what the company does. SHROUDED IN MYSTERY EB's bid for David Jones emerged last Friday and is equally shrouded in mystery. It caused a 19 percent spike in the company's share price, and was then withdrawn on Monday. EB said in a statement on its website its intention had been to hold preliminary discussions with the board while it approached financial partners. "Recent unfounded, inaccurate and ill informed publicity around our proposal has made it difficult for these discussions to take place," EB said. But it would not shed further light on who it was. "This is our only statement on this matter and we are not giving further interviews and comment in any way," EB added. The Australian Securities & Investments Commission is now examining the proposed takeover. David Jones said it first received a letter with a highly conditional, uncertain and incomplete expression of interest on May 28, and its subsequent investigations failed to find any meaningful information on EB. "This remains the case today," it said in response to a letter from the ASX on June 29, the day it said it had received an offer. A source familiar with the situation said David Jones and its adviser Gresham tried in vain to unearth details about EB and Edgar for over a month and believed the firm lacked credibility. Another source said all correspondences were by mail and never over the phone. One such letter named Australian investment bank Macquarie as the organiser of debt finance for the bid, according to the Australian Press. Macquarie declined to comment. A person familiar with the situation said Macquarie was approached in early May by EB, but dismissed the group out of hand as it was unable verify its claims. Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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