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To: ms.smartest.person who wrote (2043)	11/6/2001 10:59:03 PM
From: ms.smartest.person	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2248

Techpacific slashes values - again Wednesday, November 7, 2001 STEPHEN SEAWRIGHT For the third consecutive quarter, techpacific.com has slashed the value of its venture capital investments. Today they are valued at less than one-fifth of the company's entry costs. The company, which now plans to diversify into non-technology businesses, recorded a loss attributable to shareholders of US$14.29 million for the three months to September 30. The loss, which included provisions of US$8.9 million against the investment portfolio, was an increase of 35.5 per cent over the previous quarter. Turnover was US$2.91 million - up 27.1 per cent from the second quarter. The company said it hoped it would not need to make any further provisions against its investment portfolio, having already reduced the valuation of some of its investments to zero even though the firms concerned were still in operation. Techpacific's previous write-downs has failed to keep pace with collapsing valuations in the technology sector. The total write-down for its investments this year is US$17.9 million which represents 81 per cent of the original investment cost. "Even when they [the portfolio companies] are profitable - as some of them are - we have still written them down very severely," said Techpacific chairman Robert Owen. "We are absolutely determined that we are not going to be bitten by this one again and so we have taken an extremely ultra-aggressive posture in terms of our writing down." Chief executive Johnny Chan Kok-chung said the latest provisions would provide "a clean start" for the company. The US$2.9 million write-off on investments in the first quarter was described by Mr Owen in May as "a matter of prudence" and "significant". The US$6.1 million write-off of the second quarter was "prudent and somewhat aggressive", according to Mr Chan in August. Five or six firms in Techpacific's portfolio had closed leaving about 30 companies today, Mr Owen said. Techpacific has acquired the Singaporean corporate finance and asset management firm Crosby Asia Holdings as part of its plans to diversify into non-technology corporate finance work. "We have been looking for additional business activities which can generate better revenues, especially in the short term even in this market," said Mr Owen. The current diversification plans apply only to corporate finance work but the firm could later expand its investment portfolio to sectors other than technology. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- biz.scmp.com