Published in the Jamaica Gleaner

Newest entrants to the investment business, Proven Investments Limited (PIL), announced on Friday that its recent private placement has netted the US$20 million it recently went to the market for, making it one of the major players in the industry.

The new investment company is a partnership of pioneering investment banker Peter Bunting, Mark Golding, Garfield Sinclair and Chris Williams, who ran the investment brokerage, Dehring Bunting and Golding before selling out to Bank of Nova Scotia just over three years ago.

The offer of 200 million shares priced at US 10 cents per share opened on January 27 and was taken up by 150 private and institutional investors, PIL said. The deal was arranged by Proven Management Limited (PML), with lead sellers being stockbroking houses Mayberry and Alliance Investments.

Challenging economic climate

“This achievement by Proven Investments Limited is much more significant, given the challenging economic climate and the fact that Proven Investments Limited is a start-up company,” PIL’s chief executive Christopher Williams said in a statement.

“The feedback and support were overwhelming,” Williams said.

Proven Investments, whose assets and operations are managed by PML, says it does not manage client portfolios, but rather, it invests funds exclusively on behalf of its shareholders, who will, in turn, share in the profit or losses of the company.

“The innovative business model focuses on growing shareholder value through the maximum optimal use of capital, while eliminating front-office costs,” said Williams.