The short history of electronic invoicing specialist Tungsten (TUNG) since it listed in 2013 has been a rocky one, and now the company has attracted attention again after its board knocked back an offer for some of its assets from former chief executive Edi Truell, who has stepped down from the board in response.
The financial services veteran, better known for his role at Duke Street Capital, helped bring the company to market at 225p a share three years ago. But after a brief surge to almost 400p, concerns over its growth rates and a shorting attack on the shares combined to send them as low as 31p by last autumn. Mr Truell stepped aside to a deputy chairman role last summer and, it now transpires, has since then been seeking a deal for some of Tungsten's assets with a view to combining them with other businesses he is involved in, including vehicle telematics business Tantalum.
Mr Truell's latest offer, which came in over the weekend, again failed to include an offer for Tungsten's traded shares and, according to the remaining board members of Tungsten, was found to be "universally without merit for shareholders".
