Most U.S. companies would love to have their stock traded on two continents. But not without their authorization.
That's what happened recently to Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc. of Tampa, one of hundreds of publicly traded companies that have discovered themselves listed on at least one of several German stock exchanges. Odyssey Marine spokeswoman Laura Lionetti Barton said Friday it's "apparently legal" to list a company on certain German stock exchanges without the company's permission.
Why anyone would bother doing so is not clear. Several of the companies affected, including Aegis Assessments Inc. of Scottsdale, Ariz., speculated it's part of a scheme by German brokerages to exploit a loophole in short-selling limits set by the National Association of Securities Dealers. Some companies cited a recent drop in their domestic stock price as circumstantial evidence.
Affected companies have asked the Securities and Exchange Commission, Secret Service, NASD and other regulators to investigate. SEC spokesman John Heine declined to say whether the short-selling allegation was under investigation. An NASD spokesman said he was unable to respond to a request for comment Friday on short notice.
In the meantime, Odyssey and other companies are simply trying to get their names delisted from the German exchanges. Odyssey's name was removed last week.
"There was no reason for us to be there," spokeswoman Barton said.
