Mandolin Fund Ups Stake in Sino-Forest

The Mandolin Fund, a Singapore-based investment fund, has increased its stake in Chinese forestry company Sino-Forest and now owns 18% of the company, Reuters wrote. The embattled Sino-Forest has been accused of fraud by short-seller Carson Block and his firm Muddy Waters, Reuters wrote. Shares of Sino-Forest are down more than 70% this year.

(Reuters) – A large Singapore-based fund has again increased its stake in Sino-Forest (TRE.TO) and it now owns 18 percent of the embattled Chinese forestry company’s outstanding shares.

The Mandolin Fund, run by New Zealand-born billionaire Richard Chandler, said on Friday that it bought another 2.7 million Sino-Forest shares on Aug. 4.

Together with the common shares owned by Mandolin before the Aug. 4 acquisition, Mandolin’s shareholding in Sino-Forest is an aggregate 44.3 million common shares, the firm said.

The fund has been gradually boosting its stake in the forest plantation operator, which has been accused of fraud by influential short-seller Carson Block and his firm Muddy Waters.

Mandolin’s Sino-Forest investment over the last two months has helped lift shares of the Toronto-listed company. They ad plunged as low as C$1.29 in mid-June.

Mandolin said it bought the 2.7 million Sino-Forest shares on Thursday at an average price of C$6.09.

Shares of Sino-Forest, which are still down more than 70 percent this year, were flat at C$6 on Friday morning in choppy trading.

($1=$0.98 Canadian) (Reporting by Euan Rocha; editing by Peter Galloway)