http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/org/imasco.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=18862e3c-793d-4cec-9ba0-f1934cfc9ca7 http://tobacco.org/news/270779.html A former executive with the holding company that once owned Imperial Tobacco says the agreement reached in July to settle federal and provincial claims on smuggling was little more than "chump change" compared with what the company earned during the smuggling era in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Paul Finlayson, who for 16 years was an executive at Imasco, which once owned Imperial, said the government basically caved in to tobacco interests when it made what he claimed was a token settlement with Imperial and Rothmans Inc. Finlayson said Imperial earned $600 million to $700 million a year during the smuggling era when the company "lubricated" a system that defrauded Canadian governments of billions of dollars in unpaid taxes. . . . Now retired, he said in an interview that the $600-million settlement with Imperial represented a small fraction of the profits Imperial earned during that period and an even smaller fraction of the taxes and duties governments lost to smuggling. The Canada Revenue Agency refused to comment on Finlayson's statements. . . . Finlayson, who managed operational systems at Imasco, said he prepared the operational plans for sending Imperial cigarettes tax-free into the United States, where they were later sold to smugglers who brought them back into Canada through the Akwesasne Six Nations reserve near Cornwall, Ont. . . . "The RCMP knows all about this. They could have walked in and just handcuffed everybody at Imperial," he said, adding that the government did "not have the guts of a field mouse to go after the executives of the company." He admitted that this group could have included him. He said he was speaking out because he believes Imperial crossed the line. "The envelope was being pushed a little bit beyond what I could tolerate it being pushed." He said he left Imasco during this period. Montreal Gazette mirichardson@thegazette.canwest.com Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/000203/g1.html http://tobacco.org/news/36372.html Moody's Investors Service today upgraded the rating on Imasco's US$ commercial paper programme to Prime-1 from Prime-2. The rating action follows the announcement that Imasco's shareholders voted in favour of the offer made by British American Tobacco Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) to buy the 58% of shares it did not already own for a total consideration of C$10.68 billion. Reuters Thu, 03 Feb 2000 05:00:00 GMT http://www.newswire.ca/releases/February2000/01/c0153.html http://tobacco.org/news/36303.html Imperial Tobacco Canada Limited ("Imperial Tobacco"), the successor corporation to Imasco Limited ("Imasco"), announced today that the capital reorganisation, which was overwhelmingly approved by the shareholders of Imasco at the special meeting of shareholders held on Friday, 28th January 2000, was successfully completed today. Shareholders of Imasco are to receive C$41.60 for each of their Imasco shares. As a result of the capital reorganisation, all of the outstanding shares of Imperial Tobacco are now held indirectly by British American Tobacco plc. Canada Newswire Tue, 01 Feb 2000 05:00:00 GMT http://www.newswire.ca/releases/February2000/01/c0153.html http://tobacco.org/news/36302.html Imperial Tobacco Canada Limited ("Imperial Tobacco"), the successor corporation to Imasco Limited ("Imasco"), announced today that the capital reorganisation, which was overwhelmingly approved by the shareholders of Imasco at the special meeting of shareholders held on Friday, 28th January 2000, was successfully completed today. Shareholders of Imasco are to receive C$41.60 for each of their Imasco shares. As a result of the capital reorganisation, all of the outstanding shares of Imperial Tobacco are now held indirectly by British American Tobacco plc. Canada Newswire Wed, 02 Feb 2000 05:00:00 GMT http://www.nationalpost.com/financialpost.asp?s2=columnists&s3=critchley&f=991207/145672.html http://tobacco.org/news/32488.html Mr. Verdun, a noted critic of some of the practices of the chartered banks, has written to Paul Martin, Minister of Finance, and Alan Rock, Minister of Health, expressing his concerns about aspects of the proposed $7.85-billion takeover of Canada Trust by Toronto-Dominion Bank . . "Mr. Rock, your publicly funded advertisements describe the tobacco industry as a business without a conscience. Mr. Martin, your department has allowed Canada's largest tobacco company, Imasco, to amass a business empire that ignores the most basic principle of democracy in its flagrant assault on the rights of shareholders," said Mr. Verdun, in part of his four-page letter to the two ministers touted as the front-runners ]to succeed Jean Chretien. [This graph only National Post Tue, 07 Dec 1999 05:00:00 GMT http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/991123/s1.html http://tobacco.org/news/31574.html Standard & Poor's today revised its outlook on British American Tobacco PLC (BAT) and related entities to stable from negative. At the same time, Standard & Poor's affirmed its ratings on the companies (see list below.) Standard & Poor's also revised its outlook on Imasco Ltd. to stable from negative, and affirmed its single-'A' long-term and 'A-1' short-term ratings on the company. (See today's related press release.) In August 1999, the outlook on BAT was revised to negative from stable owing to uncertainty regarding the disposals of Imasco businesses Shoppers Drug Mart/Pharmaprix and Genstar Development Co. Reuters Tue, 23 Nov 1999 05:00:00 GMT http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/991118/bcs.html http://tobacco.org/news/31265.html British American Tobacco Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) raised its bid for Canadian conglomerate Imasco Ltd. (Toronto:IMS.TO - news) on Thursday and said it agreed to sell the Montreal company's Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacy chain to a group led by U.S. leveraged buyout firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. Reuters Thu, 18 Nov 1999 05:00:00 GMT http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/991118/y5.html http://tobacco.org/news/31255.html British American Tobacco Plc on Thursday raised its agreed bid for Canadian conglomerate Imasco Ltd (Toronto:IMS.TO - news) as the world's number two cigarette company agreed the sale of Imasco's drug store chain Shoppers Drug Mart. Reuters Thu, 18 Nov 1999 05:00:00 GMT http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=BT-CO-19990927-003237.djml http://tobacco.org/news/28093.html Imasco Ltd. (T.IMS) said British American Tobacco p.l.c. (BTI) is mailing a proxy circular to its shareholders Monday relating to the proposed acquisition by BAT of the 58% of Imasco it doesn't already own. In a news release, Imasco said the extraordinary general meeting of BAT shareholders to vote on the proposed acquisition will be held Oct. 15. As reported, Imasco announced in early August a going-private agreement with BAT, under which BAT would offer at least C$40 a share for the remaining stake in Imasco. The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition Mon, 27 Sep 1999 04:00:00 GMT