There has been a lot of chatter surrounding the likelihood of Dolla Financial Services, founded by Kadeen Mairs, acquiring the older micro lending house, Access Financial Services, founded by Marcus James more than 20 years ago.

Dolla remains adamant that it is determined to acquire Access despite the company remaining reticent on the matter and maintaining its Board of Directors has no knowledge of a proposed offer.

Last year Dolla raised $425 million.

This year it targeted $500 million through its IPO and saw its equity raise oversubscribed by more than J$4.7 billion on its first day, signalling significant faith in the microfinance company headed by Mairs.

In June of this year Dolla listed on the JSE.

Mair points out that Dolla is now the largest micro finance company in Jamaica with a market capitalisation of around J$9 billion.

He maintains that Dolla has both the financial bandwidth and the technical abilities to acquire Access and form an indomitable micro finance house unequalled in Jamaica. Access has assets under management of just over J$5.6 billion.

Speaking with Our Today earlier this month, Mairs said: “We do not want it to appear like a hostile takeover. It is unfortunate that our letter of interest was leaked; in fact, Dolla wants to acquire Access so we can add value to shareholders as Access has plateaued in performance and there are many synergies where Dolla and Access can add value beneficial for both shareholders.”

But while the prospect of a takeover is debated, the acrimonious legal battle between Julie Thompson James and Marcus James over spousal assets may prove to be a determining factor.

This did not escape the attention of Christopher Berry, executive chairman of Mayberry Investments, who tweeted: “My prediction is that M will not want to remain a minority shareholder in a company he founded and will sell all his shares if it comes to that… .”

Susan P responded: “Storm (tropical wave) in a teacup. M ain’t selling because Julie won’t let him. Court business. LascellesC, BillC, Geddes learnt the hard way. Assets deep frozen.”

To which, Berry quipped: “Are you saying that J is controlling M?”

It cannot be ignored that the marital legal drama may very well impact the corporate drama.

Only this week, American actor Sylvester Stallone’s wife Jennifer Flavin filed for divorce, citing her husband “has engaged in the intentional dissipation, depletion and/or waste of marital assets”.

She demanded that Stallone be prohibited from selling or transferring any assets during divorce proceedings.

After 25 years of marriage, Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, divorced his wife, MacKenzie Scott, in 2019.

She once wrote: “I was there when he wrote the business plan and I worked with him and many others in the converted garage, the basement warehouse closet, the barbecue-scented offices, the Christmas-rush distribution centers and the door-desk filled conference rooms in the early years of Amazon’s history.”

Years later, she tweeted after an amicable divorce and agreed settlement: “Grateful to have finished the process of dissolving my marriage with Jeff with support from each other and everyone who reached out to us in kindness and looking forward to the next phase as co-parents and friends. Happy to be giving him all my interests in the Washington Post and Blue Origin  and 75 per cent of our Amazon stock plus voting control of my shares to support his continued contributions with the teams of these incredible companies. Excited about my plans. Grateful for the past as I look forward to what comes next.”

MacKenzie became the world’s fourth-richest woman with Jeff Bezos paying her US$38 billion in the divorce settlement. A judge signed legal papers transferring the Amazon shares worth US$38 billion into MacKenzie’s name.

She married Bezos in 1993 before he founded Amazon and helped to build the company.

Closer to home, in October 2007, the Privy Council ruled that Audrey Chin, the ex-wife of Lasco founder Lascelles Chin was entitled to half his food company, Lasco Foods.

The Privy Council determined that, “Mrs Chin was working full-time in the company’s business and salaried employment would not have been inconsistent with her having a half share in the capital of the company”.

In December 1993, Mrs Chin had issued an originating summons under Section 16 of the Married Woman’s Property Act claiming a half share in the capital of the company, in which she served as managing director.