Liberty Coal welcomes the Financial Sector Conduct Authority’s (FSCA) findings, announced on Friday, confirming that no evidence was found to support the serious allegations made by Mantengu Mining Limited of price manipulation by various persons, including Liberty Coal, and that no enforcement action will be taken.
As stated from the outset, the allegations made by Mantengu and its CEO, Mr Mike Miller, were and remain baseless, ill-conceived and meritless. Such allegations were in Liberty Coal’s view recklessly pursued and recently advertised by Mantengu and Mr Miller without any factual foundation, to publicly embarrass and cause reputational harm to, among others, Liberty Coal and its leadership.
Liberty Coal notes that, irrespective of the FSCA’s findings, Mantengu intends persisting with its rash accusations of wrongdoing against the parties it contends are responsible for its diminished share price, no doubt to divert attention from its failure to meet the expectations of its shareholders despite an unprecedently buoyant international chrome market in recent years.
Liberty Coal is confident that the FSCA’s investigation process into Mantengu’s claims was both thorough and independent, and an important step toward restoring integrity to the media conversation and protecting the market from harmful misinformation. Liberty Coal furthermore reaffirms its willingness to co-operate fully with any authorities who may yet be seized with investigating the matter.
