Citadel Stake Bonds Brokers To The Net
The Age
Friday March 12, 1999
A listed Internet investment company has taken a strategic position in one of Australia's biggest discount brokers, with the million-dollar-plus deal strengthening the link between brokers and the information superhighway.
Citadel Pooled Development, which has a market capitalisation of $9.3 million, has bought 500,000 ordinary shares in Online Broker Holdings, the parent of ShareTrade Australian Stockbroking.
ShareTrade, formerly known as Australian Discount Stockbroking, receives more than 10,000 hits a day on its Internet site and is the biggest non-bank-owned Internet broker in Australia.
A person close to the deal said Citadel's 10 per cent stake in Online Broker would complement the company's other investments, such as its 10 per cent interest in Asset Ware, an online managed funds research provider, and its 15 per cent-controlled software company Syscorp.
Mr Richard Symon, the CEO of Online Broker, said Citadel's stake was a signal that the Internet provided great financial opportunities for the broking industry.
``The common thread of these investments and investment focus is the capacity to distribute services cost-effectively and efficiently worldwide," Mr Symon said.
``Citadel has the proven capacity to assist research in our development and growth strategy through a mass of opportunities."
Citadel floated in 1997 and, because it is a pooled development fund, its shareholders enjoy a raft of tax breaks, including exemption from capital gains tax and fully franked dividends.
The fund was created by Mr Tony Huntley, County NatWest's former head of industrial equities, and the property trust expert and former journalist Mr Hugh Gurner.
Citadel closed static at 44 cents.
© 1999 The Age