ORLANDO, Fla., May 12, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- TS&B Holdings, Inc. ("Company" or "TS&B") (OTCBB:TSBB), has recently been made aware of an unauthorized listing of its common stock on the Berlin-Bremen Stock Exchange. TS&B executives became suspicious that "naked short selling" was taking place in its stock due to the continuous drop in share price over the past several weeks for no apparent reason. Naked shorting is possible due to the unregulated nature of the Berlin Exchange. The Company recently learned that other companies, e.g., DiCut Inc. (DCUTE), Whistler Investments (WHIS), Nanopierce (NPCT), Datascension (DTSN) and BGR Corp. (BGR) were subjects of the same action.
According to a May 6th release by financialwire.net via COMTEX, Nanopierce commenced a lawsuit against the Depository Trust and Clearing Corp., the Depository Trust Company and the National Securities Clearing Corp., claiming these parties have nearly a $1 Billion stake in continuing a program that results in naked short selling. The Company commenced an investigation regarding the unauthorized listing of its stock on the German Exchange.
James Jenkins, TS&B Holdings CEO stated, "we have suspected for a while that naked shorting was taking place. There is no apparent reason for TSBB stock to be trading at current levels. Now that we have confirmation that this type of naked shorting is also happening to other OTCBB companies, we are taking immediate action to address the negative impact on our stock." These steps include:
* Counsel has sent a letter to the Berlin Stock Exchange demanding that TSBB be removed from the Exchange. A Form 8K has been filed with the SEC.
* The Company recently changed Transfer Agents from Atlas Transfer Company to Transfer Online, Portland, Oregon. Transfer Online certificates are a new color and have a barcode. The Company will be issuing a request to all shareholders of record to redeem their shares from their broker and take hard certificates in their possession and then send the certificates to Transfer Online for new certificates.
* The Company, through its counsel, will investigate the source of the listing on the Berlin Stock exchange to determine who initiated the unauthorized listing application and whether such actions violate the securities laws of the United States and Germany.
* The Company, through its counsel, will investigate the available remedies under German securities laws for such unauthorized actions.
* The CEO of the Company will solicit cooperation with other companies similarly situated in a unified effort to protect all such companies.
About TS&B Holdings Inc.
TS&B Holdings Inc., is a Business Development Company under the Investment Act of 1940 aggressively seeking opportunities in emerging and fast growth industries.
Safe Harbor
The statements made in this release constitute "forward-looking" statements, usually containing the words "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect," or similar expressions. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, changing economic conditions, interest rates trends, continued acceptance of the Company's products in the marketplace, competitive factors and other risks detailed in the Company's periodic report Filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release.