Hans Pandeya, Chief executive officer of Global Gaming Factory X--the firm trying to takeover The Pirate Bay and now swirling in controversy--says he has revealed the names of his financial backers to The Los Angeles Times.
It was mentioned by Pandeya last Friday after Sweded stock exchange AktieTorget withheld trading in Global Gaming's shares when it did not receive all the data it requested about the company's financial position, according to news reports in Swedish newspaper SvD. Separately, A criminal probe has been launched by Swedish government into possible insider trading related to an inexplicable jump in Global Gaming's share price a week before the company proclaimed its intention to buy The Pirate Bay. There are also doubts about the financial status of both Pandeya and Global Gaming, who is the company's largest shareholder. Both he and the company are grappling with debt, former Global Gaming CTO Johan Sellstrom told CNET News.
Ever since his announcement on his company's acquisition plan, Pandeya has declined to provide the names of his investors, who he has claimed will put up 60 million Swedish Kroner, or about $8.5 million, to fund the merger.
Pandeya's credibility is doubt after what has surfaced in the past week
However, according to CNET News, Pandeya said that other than turning over investors' lists to government officials from the stock market, he has also given the names to Ben Fritz, a media reporter with the LA Times.
"I put The Los Angeles Times in touch with one of them who confirmed the investment," Pandeya wrote. "I also provided (Fritz) with the name of the investment bank that is overseeing the investors provided they did not reveal this. So, the DD (Pandeya presumably means "due diligence") construing this has been done. Now, the stock market needed the names...and I divulged the name of the investment banking company (that) confirmed that the money was in place. Now, Both the Swedish stock market and Fritz know the name of the investment bank (besides the investors and us)."
AktieTorget wrote online that they did talk to someone claiming to be an investor. Officials, however, wanted more certification and it was unavailable Friday. AktieTorget won't allow trading to resume in Global Gaming until it receives more evidence that Global Gaming possesses enough money to complete the acquisition.
In a phone interview, Fritz declined to comment and would only refer to a July 31 report he co-wrote about Global Gaming with Times newsperson Dawn Chmielewski entitled "Pirate Bay deal surrounded by Hollywood-style headaches."
The report mentions that Global Gaming "has commitments from more than 30 private investors to provide the approximately $4 million cash portion of (The Pirate Bay) acquisition." The newspaper account does not state the origin of its info nor does it reference anywhere that the newsmen spoke to any of the company's financial backers.
A review of Latimes.com did not turn up any other stories by Fritz about Global Gaming or The Pirate Bay.
I requested for the names of investors from Pandeya under similar terms he offered to Fritz, and I promised not to publish them until after Thursday. That's the day he has said The Pirate Bay acquisition will be done.
"We agreed to keep their names confidential until after the acquisition because they are confused and strongly concerned by the blasting I have experienced in media," Pandeya wrote. "I am concerned that they will back out if journalists start scrutinizing them."
But if this is the situation, then why would he give the names to Fritz? Why wouldn't Fritz weigh in on the controversy if he had this information? There are lots of questions still unanswered about Global Gaming.
Still, nary of the motions is bigger than this one: what will become of The Pirate Bay if the merger falls through?
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