Activist investor Jeremy Raper has achieved significant victories before the Australian Takeovers Panel, intensifying an ongoing public spat with prominent resources investor Ben Cleary of Tribeca Investment Partners. The legal wins pertain to ASX-listed entities DGR Global and Canyon Resources, coming to light amidst a personal email exchange between Raper and Cleary that was later made public. The dispute underscores the often-heated dynamics within Australia’s investment community.
The more significant of Raper’s recent triumphs involved DGR Global, an investment company with a focus on early-stage resource projects that seeks to identify and develop mineral exploration opportunities. The Panel issued final orders following a long-running complaint, finding that DGR Global founder and CEO Nicholas Mather had concealed his involvement in a British Virgin Islands vehicle invested in the company. The Panel described this as one of “among the most serious examples of the market operating on an uninformed basis that the Panel has seen,” ordering the compulsory seizure and sale of Mather’s 25 per cent shareholding. Cleary previously served as a DGR Global director for three years, leaving in 2021, having secured a board seat through a convertible note in 2017.
Raper also secured a win relating to Canyon Resources, an ASX-listed bauxite miner engaged in the exploration and development of bauxite projects. In this case, the Panel sided with Raper, a minority shareholder, regarding a takeover bid from Dubai-based A2MP. The Panel concluded that A2MP had used confidential information to craft its offer, potentially pressuring minority holders to sell shares too cheaply. This particular matter was the backdrop for an email from Cleary to Raper, in which Cleary used strong language after Raper declined to offer his view on the miner, leading to Raper posting the exchange publicly.
Adding another layer to Tribeca’s recent visibility, Cleary’s firm has also been announced as the new sponsor for celebrity accountant Anthony Bell’s supermaxi yacht for the upcoming Sydney to Hobart race. While Tribeca confirmed Cleary was travelling for work when the contentious email was sent, it dismissed rumours connecting the email’s timing to yacht-related activities. Both Cleary and Raper have declined to comment further on the escalating tensions.
