Oceanus shareholder acquires 'significant stake' from creditor group in married deal

ABALONE producer Oceanus Group announced on Friday that its former major creditor, Ocean Wonder International, no longer owns shares in the group, following the acquisition of a significant stake by its new shareholder group in a married deal. 

This marks the exit of the last of the major creditor groups that became shareholders of Oceanus following a debt-restructuring exercise in 2017.

The new shareholder group is led by Alacrity Investment Group Limited, which has been one of the major shareholders in Oceanus prior to the deal. Alacrity is an investment arm of an Indonesian conglomerate that has interests across various industries, including retail and logistics.

Oceanus said in a statement that Alacrity has long-term plans to work closely with the group to "expand its presence in the aquaculture value chain".

An Alacrity spokesman said: "Under the current management, we have seen a significant transformation in Oceanus, from a debt-ridden company to one that is on track for sustainable growth. As a long-term shareholder, we recognise the long-term growth potential and are excited about the group's future plans." 

Oceanus said the group has made "significant progress" in executing its growth strategy to expand beyond a "one product, one country" company. Its transformation phase has enabled it to develop four growth pillars - aquaculture, distribution, services and innovation.

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Through investments and partnerships, the group's revenue more than doubled to RMB49.0 million (S$9.6 million) in FY2019 from RMB20.7million (S$4.1 million) in FY2017.

Said Oceanus' chief executive officer Peter Koh: "After the successful restructuring of the company, we have increased our presence to over 16 countries and seen a doubling in revenue year on year. We are confident that we are well on track to achieving our revenue target of S$100 million during this build-up phase."

Shares of Oceanus closed flat at 0.4 Singapore cent on Friday.