果冻传媒

Litigation funder Burford Capital (BUR) suffered a major setback in its long-running dispute with the Argentinian government over the 2012 nationalisation of state oil company YPF, after a US appeals court overturned a $16.1bn (拢12bn) judgment previously awarded in the case.

The firm had framed the dispute as a contract issue, as Argentina had broken YPF鈥檚 byelaws in not making an offer to minority investors of Petersen and Eton Park. But the court said that reliance on the byelaws did not create an enforceable contract claim against the state, which falls instead under the country鈥檚 expropriation laws.

In essence, the court ruled that the chosen claim route was not the right one and the investors should have taken part in the original compensation process. Burford will now likely pursue international arbitration on the issue, a process expected to take years. The shares have plummeted more than 40 per cent on the news.

鈥淲hile we are optimistic about an eventual positive outcome in the case given the availability of international arbitration, we recognise that represents a meaningful delay in expected cash proceeds and affects investors鈥� views about Burford鈥檚 present value,鈥� said chief executive Christopher Bogart.

Indeed, analysts have been assessing the costs. 鈥淚n the absence of information on the remaining fair value of YPF, we prudently write-down the carrying value to zero, equivalent to a $1.6bn (拢1.2bn) write-down,鈥� said Berenberg analyst James Allen.

CVS (CVSG) chief executive Richard Fairman is set to step down for personal reasons, the veterinary services group said, but will remain in post until a successor is appointed to ensure a 鈥渟mooth transition鈥�. The shares fell 1.5 per cent in early trading.

Fairman, who joined the company as chief financial officer in 2018 and became CEO in 2019, oversaw the company鈥檚 expansion in Australia, the resolution of an investigation into the veterinary market by the Competition & Markets Authority and its eventual promotion to the FTSE 250.

Jadestone Energy (JSE) has suspended production at a field providing around 10 per cent of group production after Cyclone Narelle damaged the Stag platform and offloading facilities.

The company shut down the offshore Australia facilities before the cyclone hit, and said no oil had been spilled. 鈥淎fter returning to the facilities on 28 March, storm-related damage was observed on the Stag platform and at the offloading facilities,鈥� Jadestone said.

Stag produces around 2,000 barrels of oil per day (b/d), compared to average group production of 20,000b/d, inclusive of gas.

Jadestone鈥檚 shares hit a 12-month high earlier this month as investors looked for weaker oil producers primed to rebound on the back of the oil and gas price hikes.

CAB Payments (CABP) has refused its biggest shareholders鈥� demand for more information to allow it to proceed with its $1.15 (86p) per share takeover bid, which the board described as 鈥渦nsolicited鈥� and 鈥渦nrecommendable鈥�.

A consortium led by Helios Investments, which owns a 45 per cent stake in the company, said on Friday that it had called on independent members of the board to 鈥減rovide the requisite information鈥� needed for it to proceed with its bid.

The firm warned that regulators would require the disclosures and that any delay would only prolong the process. It also described a rival 95p per share offer from StoneX (US:SNEX) as being undeliverable, as it would require the support of the consortium, which it has declined to grant.

However, CAB Payments鈥� independent board members have rejected both StoneX鈥檚 and the Helios consortium鈥檚 offer, arguing that Helios has only received public support from 7.59 per cent of external shareholders.

鈥淒iverting management time and attention from executing the company鈥檚 business plan 鈥� in order to assist the Helios consortium in preparing the extensive information it has requested to execute its unrecommended offer, is not in the best interests of the company鈥檚 shareholders,鈥� the board said in a statement on Friday.

CAB Payments鈥� shares currently trade at 83p.