Plastic Co Pte Ltd (‘Plastico’) is a Fiji company. The company has issued and paid up capital of $250,000 held in equal parts by two brothers. The company’s business involves making plastic products for the local market.
The brothers are planning to emigrate to New Zealand and wish to sell the company. An agreement in principle is reached for X to buy the company for $1 million. This is a cash sale.
Presume that you are wealthy and a longtime friend of X.
X comes to see you. She explains that she has in hand $800,000 (from her own savings and bank financing) and is short $200,000 to close the deal. X wants you to loan her $200,000. X has two specific proposals as follows.
Proposal One
Plastico is an old company. When founded it established its factory on the outskirts of Suva. Since that time Suva has grown and spread with the consequence that the land on which the factory stands is today much more valuable than when the factory was built. X has had the land valued at $300,000.
X has found alternative factory premises on the outskirts of modern Suva that would be suitable for the company. These premises are for sale for $100,000.
X proposes that you lend her $200,000 for four months only. X will acquire Plastico. The company’s new directors, X and her husband, will have Plastico sell its current factory and relocate to the premises already identified. The relocation will provide net cash of $200,000. Plastico will then pay a dividend of $200,000. X will use the distribution to repay your loan.
Proposal Two
X proposes that you lend her $200,000. This will be a longer term loan of say 6 years to be paid down incrementally over the life of the loan. Plastico will retain its present factory premises. As security for the loan, Plastico’s new directors, X and her husband, will have Plastico grant you a first mortgage over the current factory premises. Given the valuation placed on the premises the loan will be almost risk free.
Further details of both proposals provide an attractive return for you on the financing.
Required:
Consider each proposal separately and in turn.
Does the proposal offend any of the capital maintenance rules?
[Note ‘agreement in principle’ refers to a situation where two parties have agreed on all the terms of a deal (i.e. contract) but have not yet formally committed to the deal. In this story the parties (X and the two brothers) will only sign the contact document detailing the agreement when X has lined up the required cash of $1 million.]
