Khulna Printing and Packaging Limited(KPPL) protested a story on Saturday published in a Bangla newspaper on April 30 which said the company is going to raise Tk 400 million by issuing initial public offering in the capital market based on false information submission.
The company Chairman S M Amzad Hossain at a press conference said "the story which was published is totally baseless and untrue".
KPPL organised the press conference at a city hotel to protest the news story. The issue manager Sonali Investment Limited chief executive officer (CEO) Md. Ali Ashraf was also present at the press meet.
The printing and packaging firm is going to begin subscription today (May 4). It got Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission's (BSEC) nod to raise the money by issuing shares on March 4 this year.
As the news story alleged that the office of the firm is in a hotel in Khulna city and four directors of the company also uses the same address as their permanent address, KPPL Chairman said he the managing director of the said Hotel Western Inn.
"Can't I use my hotel's space as another company's office of that I am the Chairman? "he said adding that KPPL uses entire second floor of the hotel.
He said besides, the company has liaison office at the 10th floor of Akram Tower in 15/5 Segun Bagicha in Dhaka. KPPL also has a big factory of around one(1) acre at Purbo Rupsha of Khulna.
About the use of hotel address as four other director's permanent address, he said all the four is nominated director. KPPL used same address as their permanent address due to have easy communication. The four directors neither have any investment in the company, nor do they have share.
"So their addresses are not an issue at all," he said.
The news story said there is no existence of website (www.lockpurgroup.com) as per the information submitted in the BESC, but we created new website (www.lockpurgroup.org) as the earlier one was hacked," the KPPL chairman said adding that they informed it publicly by publishing advertising in four national dailies including The Financial Express.
The news paper alleged that according to KPPL's initial public offering (IPO) prospectus the firm's revenue in 2009 Tk 110 million which reached at Tk 340 million in 2010. But the very next year it sky-rocketed to Tk 1.19 billion, up by 247 percent which is unusual.
The company became public limited company in 2011 and started business as private limited company in 1999.
Then, between July 2011 and June 2012, the company's sales shot up to Tk 2.08 billion before dipping somewhat in July 2012- June 2013 to Tk 1.91 billion.
Defending this unusual rise and fall, the company chairman said they set up new machineries in 2019-10 fiscal year by investing 95 million, and in 2011-12 by investing 40 million, so their business shot up.
SM Amzad Hossain said KPPL sent rejoinder to the news paper which is yet to be published.
"If they don't publish the rejoinder, our board would decide whether we will file a lawsuit or take any other measure," replying to a question he said.
About the floating of 60 per cent shares in the market, he said according to BSEC rules, a company can float 70 per cent share. There is nothing wrong.
