While Private has not pulled its listing from Nasdaq just yet, company President Berth Milton said that he plans to look into moving the company to AIM market on the London Stock Exchange.
According to the London Stock Exchange website, AIM, which launched in 1995 and lists more than 2,400 companies, is dedicated to helping smaller, international companies raise capital.
To attract companies from around the globe, AIM uses a “pragmatic and appropriate approach to regulation,” according to the London Stock Exchange website.
"Now that it is clear that the AIM market is here to stay and that it is a very successful market for companies of our size which are looking to grow, we have decided to explore making a move to this market very soon,” Milton said.
In addition to citing a desire to bring the Europe-based Private to a European capital market, Milton said he was disappointed with the way Private has been treated on the Nasdaq.
One Nasdaq practice that Milton sharply criticized was so-called “naked shorting” which he believes unfairly drives down Private’s stock price.
The practice, which is perfectly legal, drives down the price of a company because traders overwhelm the market with orders to sell low on stock they don’t really own, Bob Drummond of Bloomberg said.
“In my opinion, making money from selling shares that you don't own, while pushing down a company's share price, is absolutely contrary to the whole purpose of a public listing,” Milton said.
Private is among only a handful of adult entertainment companies that are publicly traded. As XBIZ reported in June, few adult companies are a good match for the public money markets because their owners tend to prefer less publicity and scrutiny.