Cytonn Investments is seeking the ejection of Wycliffe Shamiah as the Chief Executive Officer to the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) over defamation.
This in what is a continuation of a fall out between the investment’s firm and the markets regulator over the operation of its privately placed offers which include the Cytonn High Yield Solutions (CYHS) and Cytonn Project Notes (CPN).
Recently, CMA had warned customers not to take up new investors and to change the name of the company, a matter that rubbed Cytonn the wrong way.
Cytonn has instructed the Apollo Mboya and Company law firm to institute proceeding to remove Mr. Shamiah from office sighting a number of grievances including the executive’s dispute on the legality of private offers.
In a letter, Cytonn fingers the CEO over what it alleges as deceitful classification of its private offers as unregulated in spite of relevant capital markets laws providing for the instruments.
At the same time, Cytonn says the executive has had a partisan application of policy and regulations to favor certain players while discrediting others.
CMA actions constitute an insistent attack on its brand and put into risks investments of over 30,000 Kenyans totalling more than Sh.20 billion. – Cytonn
“By your statements you are seen, heard and understood to insist that Cytonn Investments is operating without the sanctioning of the law and approval of the Capital Markets Authority a statement that we categorically refute. To date all actions carried out by Cytonn are done after getting the requisite approvals from the Authority,” Cytonn notes in relation to public statements issued by the CMA recently.
“The statement in its plain and ordinary meaning implies that Cytonn is hard-headed with no intention of working together with the regulator for the benefit of its investors which is not true as evidenced by all correspondence between the Authority and the company.”
At the same time, Cytonn says it is considering instituting a defamation suit against Wycliffe Shamiah over the publication of what it says are defamatory statement published by the regulator.
However, in its letter undersigned by Cytonn Investments Chief Executive Officer Edwin Dande, the company says it will opt out of the proceedings if the CMA pulls down the alleged defamatory statements and issues a public apology within 10 days from Thursday this week.
Earlier in June, Cytonn sought to quash criminal proceedings against it by the market regulator through the courts following investor complaints over the non-remittance of proceeds from the CYHS and CPN funds.
The company has insisted ‘troubles’ in the funds are of an administrative nature rather than criminal as it seeks to keep the CMA off the matter.
According to Cytonn, CMA actions constitute an insistent attack on its brand and put into risks investments of over 30,000 Kenyans totalling more than Sh.20 billion.
