No need to hide books: Patel

August 07, 2008 09:20:55 PM

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The RB Patel Group has challenged unlisted companies to show their books and rid the paranoia of not doing so.

The successful supermarket chain in Fiji said showing how much the company earned was one important factor investors relied on to determine their interest to heavily invest in those companies.

RBG chairman Surendra Patel said though showing a company’s financial status to the South Pacific Stock Exchange (SPSE) before listing would create an unlevelled playing field since others would know what they were up against, it was critical as it would expose the success of the company to potential investors waiting to invest substantially.

He said companies need not be paranoid about showing their books.

He added the Capital Markets Development Authority (CMDA) and the SPSE also needed to be careful given that some businesses were very “cost-cautious” companies.

“Another thing you (CMDA and SPSE) will face is the paranoia of companies to open up their books,” Patel said.

He told businesses: “If you want to be successful, and even if you are successful, there is no need to hide your books, unless you have something to hide”.

“I know government sometimes thinks profit is a dirty work but for companies, that’s the whole reason for your existence,” he added.

He said when a company went public and consistently performed, it would further build the confidence of investors in the company.

“There is so much money in the market but people are looking for places where to invest it in,” Patel said.

He said listed companies and those intending to list must study overseas stock exchanges and see how the capital market operated successfully so to better its performance here in the local market.

“Also important is that at the same time, it is important that the SPSE gives as much information to the public as much as possible,” he added.

SPSE chief executive officer Jinita Prasad said now was the right time to invest in the stock market in terms of getting family and private businesses listed on the stock exchange.

“Last year, most of the listed companies were not performing very well but with a lot of buyers coming in, this is an ideal time for companies to be listed because there are a lot of hungry investors out there wanting to invest their money,” Prasad said.