banker 6 years, 11 months ago on BISX to 'jump in' oncryptocurrency IPOs
BISX to 'jump in' oncryptocurrency IPOs
It's quite easy to hack an ICO done by novices. Most ICO hacks come from hacking the ICO website. Here is the way most of them have happened.
Lets suppose that you say that your ICO will happen on February 1, at 9 AM. You announce this on your website. Your ICO website doesn't handle any of the money. It is just a notice board. So folks go cheap on this. The way that you participate in an ICO is that they give you their wallet address, you use that in your wallet to send them Bitcoin or Ether and a smart contract puts their crypto-currency into your wallet.
But the wallet information/address is on a cheap website. A wallet address looks something like this: 2NfcaSREac5XrYQLkNQtBa8WBpemYpqEiwUFTR7
It is just a jumble of numbers and letters. So what these hackers do, is that they have plenty of time to hack into the website. Most website administrators still had default user names and passwords as admin, admin or root, password. They hack into the website and change the wallet address to one of their own. Nobody notices until they realise that there this no money coming into their website, and people who send money aren't getting their coins. It is ingenious, simple and clever. An ICO lost $7 million dollars in the first 10 minutes of their ICO.
I think though, that BISX wants to be a secondary market. After you buy your crypto-currency and you want to cash out, you put it for sale on BISX and someone will buy it. BISX doesn't actually hold the crypto. They just connect buyers and seller.
Here is the deal. Most cryptos from ICOs rise in price after the ICO. They don't go down until the company misses its first milestone. So the early bird gets the worm. I have made money on crypto that I bought soon after the ICO, and as soon as I hit my numbers -- a 10% increase in my investment, I sell it. Sure it may have gone up more and I left money on the table, but some of them have gone up by more and a couple of weeks later they are worthless.
hrysippus 6 years, 10 months ago on NIB viability threat exposed by $13.4m 'deficit' on payouts
NIB viability threat exposed by $13.4m 'deficit' on payouts
For several years now NIB has acted like a government owned completely legal Ponzi scheme. It has stayed solvent through the weekly mandatory contributions of every employer and employee in the country. With the "investments" made in Bahamas air and the doomed Bank of the Bahamas combined with the overly generous enumeration and benefits packages given to NIB employees it has been clear to me for years that it would not be able to fulfil it's pension obligations, and I have told this to any who would listen. We need a commission of Inquiry and the prosecutions for malfeasance that should follow. Buying ambulances for the Public Hospitals Authority indeed? I have rarely seen such an act of fiscal stupidity, and they were so proud, all over the front pages. Oh, Yeah, ZNS as well, great investment, or was it?
bogart 6 years, 10 months ago on Two years for Credit Bureau to start work
Two years for Credit Bureau to start work
Banks and lenders have been the leaders in advancing bigger and bigger homes to extract maximum profit. From the days when covensnts in exclusive subdivisions made it fifficult to be there then the 1500 sq ft minimum size homes again restricting Bahsmians the jones effect to be there. Banks are first approachdd by developers for financing and in return banks seek exclusives to finance these new homes and gain profits. The consumer here is different from the US consumer who are famillisrcwith 1040s, REITs, 401s a d hosts of butgeting info, consumer protections anti trust, anti competition rules and csevere penalties who prey on consumers. Here while advocates are seeking protections for the businesses there must also be protections for the consumers who in many cases get ripped off and lose. If you are going to have protections for businesses you must have protections for the consumers. $16 dollar fee to cash a $100 doĺlar chq??.usury??.....bankers making commissions and bonus for allegedly pushing unnececessary bank accounts ??...products?..
hrysippus 6 years, 10 months ago on Land ahoy! Too late, Rolly runs aground
Land ahoy! Too late, Rolly runs aground
The Royal Bahamas Defence Force,.............. .... Seems to have trouble setting a course, ....... .. .... A course to avoid hitting rock, cay or reef, ..... .. ... .... To prevent their propellers coming to grief, .... ... .. Ragged Islands the one that causes most pain, . ... ... It seems to get hit again and again, . .......... .. .... ... It will take several million to fix up this boat, . ... ... To patch up her bottom and keep her afloat, ............ .. .... Handheld GPS doesn't cost very much, . .. .... Then we wouldn't be having to bother the Dutch, ......... . I'm thinking these Dutch build a very nice craft, .. .... But for patrolling the Banks they've got too much draft, ......... ... Combine that with a slack skipper and crew, ........... ...... ... And we end up with a troublesome brew.
Sickened 6 years, 10 months ago on Land ahoy! Too late, Rolly runs aground
Land ahoy! Too late, Rolly runs aground
These fellas really determined to get all of these boats ($200 million worth) out of operation. One could wonder if it is intentional.
These captains really need some (more?) training!
hrysippus 6 years, 10 months ago on Life under the dump’s smoke
Life under the dump’s smoke
Noxious fumes from the landfill on fire, . .. .. ... Have caused an outpouring of public ire, . ............. .... . Most blame our government for this state of affairs, . ..... ......... The situation developed over many past years, . .. ... .... We used to blame Ping, Perry, Hubitty too,. ... ... ... ... Now we blame Minnis and his cabinet crew, .. ... .. ....... The truth is we all must share in the blame, .. ... ... ..... The garbage we toss helps to feed the flame, .. .. .. .. .... .. Our garden waste we must compost, .. .. ... .. ..... Gaining soil, not leaf mould lost, . .. .. ... ... .. Buying nothing that comes in a plastic wrap, . .. .. .......... or a plastic bottle with a plastic cap, ,, ,, ,,, ,,, Ginny had a great idea to shred up our tires,............ .... ....... ....... A much better use than feeding those fires, . .. .. .. .... Turning then into a sort of tarmac, ..... . ... .. .... .. A road surface reluctant to crack, ... ... .. .. ....... The environmental levy of ten dollars each tire, ............. ... ...... Makes our government look like a liar. ... .. ... .... As long as these politicos have so little shame, .. .. .. .... That dump will catch fire again and again.
observer2 6 years, 10 months ago on Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
MadHatter
http://bisxbahamas.com/wp-content/uploa…
Count yourself lucky that the offering is only for high net worth individuals and institutional investors. Take a look at the financial on the above link and you will see that the company lost $15 million last quarter and had capital outlays of $21 million.
It also had total liabilities of $557 million...yes, that half a billion dollars!!! The entire Bahamas government, with all of their mis management only has 8 billion of debt.
Also, they only have $6 million in net revenues to service the half a billion of debts.
Now they are borrowing another $15 million and just got a loan of $50 million from its Chinese Vendors, Huawei. The debt is going to be so high that Huawei/Chinese will need to come in and be their savior. In the meantime the bond holds will be wiped out, just like the equity holders have already been wiped out.
I give it a couple of years. The Chinese are not going to pay the interest on all these loans forever. Baha Mar here we come!
Also, 5G is coming which will need another upgrade and I am sure Google will provide satellite internet to compete.
But no worries, I am sure National Insurance will subscribe to a bunch of Cable's bonds with what little is left of our retirement funds.
DonAnthony 6 years, 10 months ago on Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Your analysis is incorrect in a very material respect, this preference share offering is not tied into Cable Bahamas balance sheet or debt. This is debt issued by Aliv as a separate entity from Cable, true Cable has management control and owns 48.75% of stock but debt repayments will be made from future Aliv earnings.
The reason the interest rate is so high is to compensate investors for the risk that this is divorced from Cable and is totally unsecured debt. So if Aliv is a flop one can lose their whole investment.
I agree with mad hatter that this should be open to the general public, as the minimum allocation is 50k, and if one can afford to invest this amount the expectation is that one would be capable of making a wise investment decision or have the means to obtain it professionally. All share offerings should be open to the public and filled from the bottom up, as this is one of the few meaningful ways the general public can partake in significant wealth generation in our economy. We are watching to see if the present government fulfills their pledge to make a Aliv and BTC ordinary shares available to all!
observer2 6 years, 10 months ago on Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Hi DonAnthony
With due respect you are not correct. Under the equity accounting method of consolidation, because Cable own's 48.75% of Alive the full results of Alive are consolidated into Cable's results. Any ownership over 20% must be consolidated into the parent companies financials.
http://bisxbahamas.com/wp-content/uploa…
See Note 21 in the financial statements link above. Actually the results of Aliv are even worse that I had imagined according to this note. Revenues of $12 million and losses last year of $55 million!
Aliv is not a publicly traded company so their non consolidated results are not published to the general public.
Based on my reading of the financial statements it is still my recommendation that Alive is correct in not allowing the general public to subscribe to this debt issuance. Let high net worth individuals and institutions loose their money. Lol.
However, the only problem here is that the pension funds have a high concentration risk to Cable/Aliv with over half a billion dollars owing.
This will not end well. Stay clear.
DonAnthony 6 years, 10 months ago on Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
The point I was making which is correct is that this is not debt issued by cable or that will be paid from cable’s earnings. This is debt issued and paid for by future Aliv earnings. This choice was deliberate as investors have had more than their fill of cable debt ( I agree completely that cable is overextended and leveraged) and the offering would have failed had it been structured as such.
So to analyze cable’s debt and balance sheet and conclude it is not a wise financial decision, as you did is incorrect. One needs to review Aliv’s financials as I have, as I was one of the solicited investors. There is no dispute that the earnings of Aliv will accrue and be consolidated into Cable’s in the proportion of their share ownership. That was not in question.
This is an offering with risk, no doubt, but as a savvy investor knows risk and returns go hand in hand. The key is to be an astute evalutor of risk and ensure that the expected return compensates for that risk. Risk is not always bad it is an opportunity.
As to Aliv having revenues of just 12 million and losses of 55 million you must realize that Aliv is a startup, capital intensive company, with significant growth potential, very rare in this economy. In the initial year of operation those losses are to expected. If Aliv reaches their goal in 3 years of 50% market share and ARPU of 56 then ebidta will be 33 million and the company will be a success and the initial losses of 55 mill meaningless. So far they are on track with market share but ARPU is lagging. Only time will tell but I am thrilled that as a Bahamian I have the opportunity to evaluate and if I like participate. This option should be extended to as many Bahamians as possible who have the 50 k to invest, not just a select few.
observer2 6 years, 10 months ago on Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Hi DonAnthony
Thank you for your well constructed comments.
Its actually refreshing to have a conversation with someone who is actually reading financial statements and assessing the risk of an investment as best as possible. Not not taking the company fluff published in the Tribune. Thank God they allow us bloggers!
For too long Bahamian's have blindly invested in Clico, Bank of the Bahamas, Gulf Union, Bahamas Supermarkets etc etc without actually reading the financial statements which are readily available to the general public. If they did many of them would not have lost millions of their hard earned savings.
Based on your comments we are actually discussing two different issues:
- Should Aliv preference shares and bonds be available to the "average" small investor
and
- Will Aliv actually survive as a start up against BTC and foreign carriers.
The answer to question one is that the management of Aliv have said no. Aliv is not going to allow small investors into their debt issue because it is not appropriate for them. I am not saying this. Aliv are saying this. They are not publishing on BISX their audited financial statements. I agree with Aliv. Start ups, as Aliv is, in numerous situations fail. If Aliv fails with a bunch of small time investors, the general public will scream to the government and Bisx as to why they weren't protected against such a speculative investment. All of the major tech companies in the US started out as private companies and not available to the general public due to risk. Eg. Google, Facebook and Microsoft. Uber is still private. Once they become profitable they can go public.
My only comment here is weather Bahamians realize it or not, if they own Cable Bahamas stock they have $189 million of Aliv's assets on their balance sheet. If Aliv fails, Cable stock price should be written down.
I suspect, based on only $12m in revenue and $55m in losses the auditors will need to take a significant write down of Cables assets this year.
Lets see.
observer2 6 years, 10 months ago on Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
Aliv’s $15m offering could ‘double’ goal
- Will Aliv actually survive as a start up against BTC and foreign carriers.
I doubt it, but that's my personal opinion. BTC is owned by the Bahamas Government and Liberty Media, both loss making entities. Liberty Media had significant assets in Puerto Rico which suffered massive damage in last hurricane. It will be impossible for them to rebuild as no one will invest in the Caribbean with super hurricanes (wind greater than 150 mph/ greater than Cat 5) caused by global warming. This goes for Aliv as well. Lets just hope we don't have a super hurricane going through Nassau this year. Aliv, BTC and BEC will be complete write offs. Don't believe me? Dig a little deeper into Peurto Rico's recovery and financials. They are now bankrupt. A failed state, due to the hurricane.
Also the foreign carriers, Sprint etc., are competing aggressively for Bahamian customers in Miami. They are offering free low speed internet, free text, no roaming charges and only 20 cents a minute calls to the US. They are also offering free phones to Bahamians! Soon we won't just be shopping for cloths in Miami, we will be getting our phone service as well.
Also, with WhatsApp it doesn't really matter where your phone number is located. All calls are free!
Cable/Aliv's $500m needs to be checked for impairment.
I don't think I need go further.
Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 5 months ago on Miller blasts BOB bail-out entity for selling his plaza
Miller blasts BOB bail-out entity for selling his plaza
Now we learn about other loans and advances to the likes of Shane Gibson, Algernon Allen and his sister Pauline Allen-Dean, and even Paul McWeeney himself. No doubt there are many other political elites who received loans and advances from BoB that far exceeded the value of the assets they pledged to BoB as security. And no doubt too, many FNM politicians and their cronies under the last Ingraham administration received similar loans and advances from BoB under exceptionally generous ‘give-away’ terms and conditions without having to pledge anywhere near adequate security.
Keep in mind that BoB is majority owned and controlled by the Bahamas government; accordingly its overall affairs fall directly within the Office of the PM as well as the portfolio of the Minister of Finance. Most, if not all, of these scandalous loans and advances have had to be, for all intents and purposes, either fully provided for or written off by BOB or its Bahamas Resolve bail-out vehicle at great cost to hard working honest Bahamian taxpayers. Small wonder that, notwithstanding the mega millions in taxpayers’ funds required to bail out BOB, Perry Christie was only too quick to come to the defense of Paul McWeeney (brother of Sean McWeeney) for having so handsomely rewarded the PM's political friends and business cronies!
I also recollect Christie being only too quick to come to the defense of tax dodgers and dead beat debtors like Ishmail Lightbourn and Lady Poodling. In the case of Ishmail Lightbourn the PM readily admitted he had phoned the managing director of CIBC First Caribbean Bank in an effort to wrongfully intercede in that bank’s seizure by mortgage foreclosure proceedings for Lightbourn’s seaside mansion on West Bay Street. No doubt Christie would have been similarly inclined to contact certain members of BoB’s board of directors and senior management in order to intercede in the making of loans and advances on very generous terms to his political friends and business cronies. All of these shenanigans on the part of Perry Christie (and no doubt Hubert Ingraham too) clearly evidence a very twisted moral compass by any standard at the highest levels of past PLP and FNM administrations alike, which probably explains why the Minnis-led FNM government has remained very tight lipped about others who were allowed to rob BoB.
Last we heard Paul McWeeney was working for the insurance side of Franky Wilson's businesses. Yep, Paul McWeeney apparently ended up in the safe arms of Sir Snake. Well what can you say except that birds of a feather do flock together!
Clamshell 5 years, 11 months ago on New fundraiser to help people after failed festival is targeting $400k
New fundraiser to help people after failed festival is targeting $400k
I’m gonna start a GoFundMe page for folks who post here on The Tribune website. . “Peoples is givin’ away money! We gots to get us some!”
banker 5 years, 7 months ago on Private equity venture eyes ‘$100m-$200m opportunities’
Private equity venture eyes ‘$100m-$200m opportunities’
This just proves how Mickey Mouse our regulators are with no teeth, a paper tiger and everything for sale. In any other jurisdiction, Julian Brown would not be licenced to practice financial services, the regulator would prosecute for white collar crime, and the exchange would de-list and bar him. Shame on you Hillary Deveaux and Keith Davies. It just proves that you are without ethics, oversight and professionalism. This is why the Bahamas never advances. We have no moral compass and the world knows it. You can't trust Bahamians in Financial Services unless they have foreign ownership and oversight. We are a joke and that is why our second pillar of the economy is collapsed.
realitycheck242 5 years, 7 months ago on Private equity venture eyes ‘$100m-$200m opportunities’
Private equity venture eyes ‘$100m-$200m opportunities’
Character, reputation, shady financial dealings, Look before you leap. Buyer beware, wise up Bahamians
ohdrap4 5 years, 7 months ago on Private equity venture eyes ‘$100m-$200m opportunities’
Private equity venture eyes ‘$100m-$200m opportunities’
who is going to buy from julian brown?
banker 5 years, 7 months ago on BISX inks 'world class' digital exchange boost
BISX inks 'world class' digital exchange boost
LOL. Keith is a biggety all-mouth. A year and a half ago, he said that he was on the ball with crypto and he would have a solution in 6 weeks. His over-enthusiastic bombastic pronouncements are as bad as Trumps. In the meantime, he preside over a moribund exchange that is a joke with no real operating gravitas.
John 5 years ago on Warrant issued for Archer
Warrant issued for Archer
Make sure all the windows are closed in case Jack decides to Jump.
realitycheck242 6 years, 11 months ago on Mitchell says fall in crime is thanks to PLP
Mitchell says fall in crime is thanks to PLP
Mitchell and Brave them need to just sit small for the next for years and pray for forgiveness for messing up this country and stop reminding people of the mess every time they ope their mouth an always remember that Lies always backfires.because the electorate has awoken.