Directorate Change

RNS Number : 5469L

Myanmar Investments Intl Ltd

27 December 2018

 

27 December 2018

Myanmar Investments International Limited

(the "Company")

Appointment of a new Non-Executive Director

Myanmar Investments International Limited, the AIM-traded investment company focussing on investing in Myanmar, is pleased to announce the appointment of Nicholas (Nick) John Paris as a non independent Non-Executive Director to the board of the Company, with immediate effect.

Mr Paris, aged 58, is currently a director and portfolio manager with LIM Advisors (London) Limited. One of the funds managed by the LIM Advisors Group, LIM Asia Special Situations Master Fund Limited ("LIM"), owns 7,718,665 ordinary shares ("Ordinary Shares") representing 20.5 per cent. of the Company's ordinary share capital and 2,938,145 quoted warrants ("Warrants") which are convertible into Ordinary Shares. As a representative of LIM, Mr Paris will be considered a non-independent, non-executive director. 

Over the past 30 years, Mr Paris has gained extensive experience as a stock broker and fund manager with a particular emphasis on closed end funds and hedge funds. He has held senior positions with institutions such as American Express Asset Management, Credit Lyonnais Securities Asia, Santander Securities and Baring Securities. In his current position at LIM Advisors he invests in closed end funds with a principal focus on funds investing in Asia.

Mr Paris is a Fellow of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales and holds a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Agricultural Economics from the  University of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne.

William Knight, Chairman of the Company, said "We are delighted that Nick has agreed to join us as a non-independent non-executive director on MIL's Board complementing our existing strengths and bringing to it an added dimension through his business background, connections and experience."

The following further information is disclosed in accordance with Schedule 2 (g) of the AIM Rules for Companies.

Current Directorships and Partnerships	Directorships and Partnerships held in the last 5 years
LIM Advisors (London) Limited	Global Resources Investment Trust plc
ASEANA Properties Ltd	In and Out Limited
Purbeck Capital Limited (formerly Purbeck Advisers Limited)
Purbeck Advisers LLP
Brewery Mews Residents Management Limited

Mr Paris has a 0.05 per cent. holding in LIM Asia Special Situations Master Fund Limited, a 20.5 per cent. shareholder in the Company and as such Mr Paris indirectly holds 0.01 per cent. of the Company's issued share capital.   Mr Paris does not hold a direct interest in the Company's Ordinary Shares nor does he have a direct interest in the Company's Warrants.

There are no other matters which are required to be announced for Mr Paris pursuant to Schedule 2(g) of the AIM Rules for Companies.

For further information please contact:

Craig Martin Managing Director Myanmar Investments International Ltd [phone] [phone] [e-mail]	Michael Dean Finance Director Myanmar Investments International Ltd [phone] [phone] [e-mail]
Nominated Adviser Philip Secrett / Jamie Barklem / Seamus Fricker Grant Thornton UK LLP [phone]	Broker William Marle / Giles Rolls finnCap Ltd [phone]

For more information about MIL, please visit www.myanmarinvestments.com

Notes to Editors

Myanmar Investments International Limited (AIM: MIL) was the first Myanmar-focused investment company to be admitted to trading on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange. MIL was established in 2013 with the intention of building long-term shareholder value by proactively investing in a diversified portfolio of Myanmar businesses that will benefit from the country's re-emergence and ongoing economic development. The Company is led by an experienced and entrepreneurial team who between them have considerable industrial, corporate and financial management experience.

MIL aims to identify investments with strong growth which if necessary can be "de-risked" through the introduction of experienced senior line-management, mentors and/or strategic partners sourced by MIL's management board. The Company's main focus is on opportunities that are experiencing acute supply and demand imbalances.

MIL provides investors with a highly disciplined and conservative investment process into one of the most promising growth opportunities of this era.

MIL's largest investment to-date (US$21 million investment for a 9.1% effective shareholding) is in Apollo Towers, Myanmar's second largest telecommunications towers company with approximately 1,800 towers. Apollo operates in the high growth telecommunications sector with a strong management that is growing the number of co-locations (i.e. multiple tenancies) on its portfolio of towers. The reorganisation with Pan Asia Towers is expected to produce a more efficient and profitable combined investment with greater prospects for an eventual liquidity event. In June 2016, OPIC provided a US$250 million debt facility to Apollo Towers.

MIL's first investment in August 2014 was into Myanmar Finance International Limited ("MFIL") which today is one of the leading microfinance companies in Myanmar. Since MIL invested, MFIL's business has expanded rapidly. The business is profitable with a sustainable expansion plan for long-term growth. In November 2015, the Norwegian Government's Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries ("Norfund"), the Norwegian development finance institution, also became a 25% shareholder in MFIL.

MIL's third investment in May 2017 was into Medicare International Health and Beauty Pte. Ltd., ("Medicare"). This was a greenfield pharmacy, healthcare and personal care product retail franchise joint venture. The joint venture partners are: a) H&B Management Solutions Pte. Ltd., which owns Medicare Vietnam, one of the largest pharmacy, health, beauty and personal care retail groups which runs over 70 outlets in Vietnam; and b) Randy Guttery, an industry veteran in the retail sector in Asia. It is expected that Medicare will fill a vacuum in the present retail landscape and at the same time tap into the rapid growth of the middle and affluent classes in Myanmar. As of 30 September, MIL has invested US$1.9 million for a 48.6% shareholding in Medicare and expects to invest more as the store rollout programme continues.

Myanmar, a country of approximately 54 million people and roughly the size of France, has been isolated for much of the last 50 years. Strategically situated in one of the world's most economically dynamic regions amid the intersection of India, China and South East Asia it is a key component of China's 'One Belt One Road' strategy providing direct access to the Indian Ocean.

Whilst it was once one of the more prosperous countries in Southeast Asia with an abundance of natural resources (oil, natural gas, arable land, tourist attractions and a long coastline), it is now one of the least developed countries in the world. However, it has a number of competitive advantages: a population of 54 million people (it is the 26th most populous country in the world); a large workforce with a high literacy rate of 90%; 68% of the population is of working age (between 15 and 65); and 28% of the population is under 24 which is expected to provide a strengthening consumer demand. According to the IMF, Myanmar's GDP growth rate is expected to be 7.0% through to 2023.

Myanmar has undergone an unprecedented transformational reform process, initiated by the U Thein Sein administration in 2011. The elections in 2015 were the first democratic elections in 50 years. This remarkable change has not been without its difficulties and the situation in Rakhine state, which stems from a complex and historically charged background, remains un-remedied. The Advisory Commission on the Rakhine State crisis, led by the late former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, has provided an important framework which can provide the foundations for addressing the distressing situation there.

 

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