A foundation representing investors in the United States as well as three other parts of the globe said it is taking a shareholder fraud action in a Utrecht civil court related to a major acquisition by Fortis NV, a European company that had been hard hit by U.S. subprime exposures and subsequently went through a government bailout.
A spokeswoman for Fortis’ successor company Agaes told this publication that through press inquiries it was aware of the foundation, Stichting Investors Claims Against Fortis, but it had little comment on the matter as neither it nor its attorneys had at press time received a writ of summons.
According to the foundation's press release, at the at the heart of the action lies allegations of fraud surrounding Fortis’ 2007 rights issue to acquire Dutch bank ABN Amro, an offering that raised the equivalent of billions of dollars, most of which was lost to the financial crisis.
The Agaes spokeswoman said that the company has in the past and would again appeal any claims of misinformation.
The foundation and its attorneys, including U.S. securities law firms Grant & Eisenhofer and Barroway Topaz, said they believe their fraud action represents a new avenue for pursuing international securities claims in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that blocked recovery for foreign investors who purchase securities in non-U.S. companies on foreign exchanges. The foundation said it represents investors in Europe, the Middle East and Australia as well as in the U.S.
