The cease trading of International Wayside Mines (IWA) shares, followed by the intrusion of the CDNX security compliance department into the corporate affairs of a public company, has stunned and disgusted market-watchers and investors alike.
It appears to have been triggered by criticism from visitors representing brokerage firms and [from] others who are apparently unfamiliar with the travails of penny stock mining exploration in Canada. Here is a company that persevered in British Columbia, in an absolutely horrible mining market, and drilled and drilled while most similar companies could not raise the price of a cup of coffee.
They had experienced geological staff, handled the core in a better way than most big companies I have seen for the early stage, and tried to keep the public informed.
A discovery leads to chaos, and it appears to me IWA was attempting to deal with it in a timely fashion.
This transition from wildcat drill program to a full-blown drilling development stage is a trip through the looking glass for a company and its people. Ned Reid, the discoverer of the bonanza ledge, has a wealth of experience in gold mining and exploration. In nearly all discoveries, the team responsible is quickly caught up in the politics of transition, and the original role becomes blurred.
The shareholders and regulators were apparently concerned by the whispers of “Busang,” which galvanized the “wish-I-had-caught-BreX-before” fantasy of the regulators. This post-BreX paranoia triggered the decision to interfere in the marketplace and [in the] management of a public company.
What message does this send to the dozens of other well-run companies financing and prospecting on the Canadian Venture Exchange? Will we require a host of shiny black shoes and blue suits at our boardroom table? Who is going to pay the bill for this burden? The shareholders.
The small mining exploration company needs to be quick on its feet, make decisions and act; it also should be allowed to reap the rewards with its shareholders. If the shareholders are not happy, changes will be made.
[Regulators,] in the case of IWA, if something is drastically wrong, tell us, the investing public, right away, but do not halt a stock for weeks. All you hurt are the shareholders and the credibility of the stock exchange.
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