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The Somali pirates, renegade Somalis known for hijacking ships for ransom in the Gulf of Aden, are negotiating a purchase of Citigroup.
The pirates would buy Citigroup with new debt and their existing cash stockpiles, earned from hijacking numerous ships, including most recently a $100 million Saudi Arabian oil tanker. The Somali pirates are offering up to $0.10 per share for Citigroup, pirate spokesman Sugule Ali said earlier today. The negotiations have entered the final stage, Ali said. ”You may not like our price, but we are not in the business of paying for things. Be happy we are in the mood to offer the shareholders anything,” said Ali.
The pirates will finance part of the purchase by selling new Pirate Ransom Backed Securities. The PRBS’s are backed by the cash flows from future ransom payments from hijackings in the Gulf of Aden. Moody’s and S&P have already issued a AAA investment grade rating for the PRBS’s.
Head pirate, Ubu Kalid Shandu, said “We need a bank so that we have a place to keep all of our ransom money. Thankfully, the dislocations in the capital markets have allowed us to purchase Citigroup at an attractive valuation and to take advantage of TARP capital to grow the business even faster.”
Shandu added, “We don’t call ourselves pirates. We are coast guards and this will just allow us to guard our coasts better.”
Bloomberg News 10:24 AM
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WILL REQUIRE ALL CITI EMPLOYEES TO WEAR PATCH OVER ONE EYE
SOMALIAN PIRATES APPLY TO BECOME BANK TO ACCESS TARP
PAULSON: TARP PIRATE EQUITY IS AN “INVESTMENT”, WILL PAY OFF
KASHKARI SAYS “SOMALI PIRATES ARE ‘FUNDAMENTALLY SOUND’”
MOODY’S UPGRADE SOMALI PIRATES TO AAA
HUD SAYS SOMALI DHOW FORECLOSURE PROGRAM HAD “VERY LOW” PARTICPATION *
FED OFFICIALS: AGGRESSIVE EASING WOULD CUT SOMALI PIRATE RISK
FED AGREED TODAY TO TAKE “WHATEVER STEPS” NEEDED FOR SOMALI PIRATES
