[plug] Red Hat Shares non-offer

[Paul Wilson]

From: Bret Busby <bret at clearsol.iinet.net.au>
> I assume everyone has heard about the Red Hat share IPO in the USA.
>
> It appears that people who are Red Hat users, are not to be able to buy
shares
> in the company; only people who don't give a stuff about the company and
its
> interests; corporate share speculators.
>
> I have tried to find whether IPO's (especially this one) are available to
people
> outside the USA.
>
> The primary underwriter, Goldmans Sucks, aren't interested in providing a
useful
> answer to the question, E*Trade, who are another of the three
underwriters, do
> not respond to email (apart from not acknowledging email), the ANZ, who
has an
> "alliance with E*Trade", does not either acknowledge, or respond to email,
and
> Red Hat advised that they cannot advise on the matter. I sent an email to
the
> USA SEC, which approves IPO's, on Friday (Western Australian time), but
have not
> got a response (or acknowledgement)
>
> So, this is the share offer that isn't. The stated purpose of the IPO, is
that
> the shares are supposed to made available in small parcels, to people who
are
> not speculators, who are interested in investing in the company, but, not
as
> speculators.

I asked a local stockbroker about this last Wednesday. The answer was,
pretty much, "you need $10,000 US before the US brokers will take you
seriously and pay attention to you.".  He would have tried to get some
shares, but the cost would be in the $200-$250 AU range for the transaction
(and the same to sell them), so I didn't bother.

It looks as if there isn't a method of buying US shares from Oz - unless you
try something like the Commonwealth online service, but they want $10,000 AU
on deposit first !

Electronic share trading? Bah, humbug !

Paul