Monday, July 20, 2009

Does Arabian Peninsula Group Even Exist?

No deal and possibly no company

Harman International makes high-end audio equipment.

Harman International makes high-end audio equipment.

Most people interested in Harman International Industries Inc. already know that the company says it has not received a buyout offer from Arabian Peninsula Group. Rumors about the alleged buyout offer spread pretty far pretty fast. Reuters says:

Several media outlets on Sunday received faxed statements that said a private investment firm called Arabian Peninsula Group (APG) planned to buy Harman for $49.50 a share — double the high-end audio equipment maker’s Friday close of $25.18.

Although the fax quoted an executive from Arabian Peninsula Group named Donald Parker, there was no contact information. Harman says it has never heard of Arabian Peninsula Group, and so far it appears that no one else has either.

Yea or nay? Hard to say

Reuters says it’s difficult to verify whether Arabian Peninsula Group is a real company because Kuwait has no financial regulator. The area code that the fax supposedly came from was a Kuwait code.

In the United States it is easy to verify every type of business — from a payday loan company to a pet store — because businesses must have a license. However, the same level of regulation isn’t present in Kuwait, so it’s harder to verify a business’s legitimacy. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Does Arabian Peninsula Group Even Exist?"

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