There appears to be a change of guard to be announced at tTech Limited following Thursday’s stock market trade in which 49.07 per cent of the company’s shares changed hands.

There were three trades done at 12:59 pm totalling 52,012,834 ordinary shares valued at $114,428,234.80 or $2.20 per share. The last two trades equate to tTech co-founder Edward ‘’Teddy’’ Alexander’s 46,712,834 shares in the company or 44.07 per cent of the company’s issued shares. Alexander is currently the chairman of tTech and held the most shares in the company which has 106 million ordinary shares.

While it’s unknown who made the third trade of 5.30 million ordinary shares which equates to roughly five per cent of the total, the company’s shareholder records show it could only be one of Enqueue Inc, a company connected to tTech Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Norman Chen; Auctus Holdings Inc, a company connected to director Gordon Christopher Reckord, the estate of the late tTech co-founder Hugh O’Brian Allen or Mayberry Jamaican Equities Limited (MJE). This trade comes a month after tTech paid a $0.048 dividend totalling $5.09 million to shareholders on June 6.

The information technology service provider company was listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) on January 7, 2016, after it raised $50.26 million in fresh equity at $2.50 per share. Since then, it has grown its balance sheet to $340.98 million in March 2024 and capital base to $244.74 million. While there has been changes over the years in business activity, tTech was still able to deliver $463.48 million in revenue for 2023 and net profit of $20.52 million.

As a result of more than 20 per cent of tTech changing hands, a disclosure must be made to the JSE within 10 days on the purpose of the acquisition, whether there are further share purchases will be made or if there is an intention to acquire control of the business which is defined as more than 50 per cent of the voting rights. The move to not purchase more than 50 per cent of the company’s ordinary shares was so that the purchaser would not trigger a mandatory offer requirement. JSE rules stipulate that an offer should be made to all other shareholders to purchase their shares once one entity or individual purchases at least 50 per cent of a listed entity.

The potential change of guard at tTech would represent the second major buyout of a founder controlled publicly listed company on the JSE this week. AS Bryden & Sons Holding Limited purchased a 44.8 per cent stake in Caribbean Producers (Jamaica) Limited on Tuesday for $5.17 billion with intentions of taking control of the company at a later stage. Prior buyouts of Junior Market founders include the Dolphin Capital Company S de RL de CV buying control from Stafford Burrowes in December 2015, Derrimon Trading Company Limited buying control of Caribbean Flavours and Fragrances Limited from Anand James in February 2017 and GraceKennedy Limited buying control of Key Insurance Company Limited in March 2020.

There appears to be a change of control at tTech Limited which was co-founded by Edward ‘’Teddy’’ Alexander.