Investment house J Stern & Co threatens to sue over UK oil firm buyout

Investment house J Stern & Co is threatening to sue commodities trader Mercuria over its controversial takeover of a British oil and gas firm.

J Stern claims the Switzerland-based firm is trying to buy London-listed Phoenix Global Resources on the cheap.

The investor is also targeting Phoenix’s directors for failing to act in the company’s best interests. Mercuria, which owns more than 70 per cent of Phoenix, promised smaller shareholders such as J Stern in 2017 – when it took its majority shareholding – that the firm would be run independently.

But now, Mercuria plans to take over Phoenix – by offering other investors 7.5p per share, or letting them keep their stake but stripping away their shareholder protections.

J Stern claims the offer ‘grossly and materially undervalues Phoenix given the strength of its oil and gas asset portfolio’.