Noble shares surge as CEO buys shares, vows transparency

SINGAPORE — Noble Group’s shares rose as much as 6.5 per cent today (March 6) as the embattled commodities trader said its chief executive bought stock, boosting confidence among investors rattled by claims of improper accounting practices made by an obscure research firm.

Chief executive Yusuf Alireza yesterday bought 5 million Noble shares at S$1.0058 apiece, the company said in a regulatory filing, in a transaction worth just over S$5 million. The purchase lifts his personal stake in Noble to 0.4 per cent from 0.33 per cent.

Noble shares rose as high as S$1.07 each, extending gains from a one-year low of 92 cents hit earlier in the week, before closing up 5 per cent at S$1.055. The stock was the most actively traded on the Singapore Exchange, with about 75.4 million shares changing hands.

Mr Alireza had bought the shares the same day that Noble issued a strong rebuttal to claims of improper accounting made by Iceberg Research, an anonymous research firm, and pledged to provide more disclosures to increase transparency.

Noble share price had tumbled nearly a fifth in the previous two weeks after Iceberg Research accused the company of improper accounting and said it expected more write-downs on the investment in Yancoal Australia. AGENCIES