Oidon Company, Ltd. (OIDN)

[MindlessSelf]

Here is a very detailed Investigative Report dated may 2006 on the company from the start. Very informative. http://www.stockpatrol.com/article/key/metrogoldmines


Companies attract interest for a variety of reasons. Management announces a new product, service, acquisition or initiative, and investors respond. A new patent, a trademark, or FDA approval of drug trials may spark interest in a stock. On occasion, promoters successfully intrigue investors with promises of stellar performance and tales of skyrocketing profits.

In each such instance, some activity or announcement brings attention to the company and drives investors to the stock. There are times, however, when there is no apparent rationale for trading activity; where volume soars or prices move significantly without a word from the company or its proponents. In those cases, observers can only sit back and wonder who might be selling all of those shares, and why anyone would be motivated to buy them.

Which brings us to Anglo-Andean Mining Co. (Pink Sheets AADN), a Pink Sheet company that made a splash last week. What was so intriguing about Anglo-Andean? Start with the trading volume, which popped from 1000 shares on April 24, 2006 to 3,290,300 shares on April 27, 2006.

Then there is the share price, which rose from 6 cents at the opening on April 24th to a high of 12 cents a share on April 27th.

More than 3 million shares changed hands in a single day, and the stock price doubled in less than a week – all without the benefit of a single press release or public announcement

And then, on May 1, 2006, the Company changed its name – for the second time in two months and the fourth time in two years – to Metro Gold Mines Mineral Resources, Inc. (or, more informally, MGM Mineral Resources (Pink Sheets: MGMX).

Mystery solved – or compounded?


History Lessons
As Sinatra sang, "How little we know. How much to discover…"

The Company's name may have changed once again, but interest in the Company – as measured by trading volume – continues to grow. On May 3, 2006, the Company was among the most active issues traded on the Pink Sheets; almost 20.7 million shares of MGM stock were traded, at prices ranging from 8.5 cents to 13 cents a share. What do investors know about the Company? A little more than last week – but still, very little.

As Anglo Andean Mining, the Company was strikingly silent, even as its stock price rose and trading volume swelled. Anglo Andean did not file public reports with the SEC's Edgar System, or post financial reports on the Pink Sheets. And we have found no record of press releases issued by the Company during its brief life as Anglo Andean. Consequently, public investors have had no meaningful information which might convince them to buy or sell shares. So why were they buying?

The Pink Sheets offered only a modicum of information about Anglo Andean – presumably all that was available from the Company. According to the Pink Sheets, Anglo Andean was a Delaware corporation located at 10016 Romandel Avenue, Santa Fe Springs California, and its telephone number was [phone]. We called that number and reached the offices of a business called "Color and Copy." The woman answering the phone said that Color and Copy had been using that number for at least one year. She said she never has heard of Anglo-Andean.

The Pink Sheets listing offered few additional details about Anglo Andean. A description of the business was "not available;" the names of officers were "not available;" the number of outstanding shares and market cap were similarly "not available." In fact, the most meaningful information that was available – other than the Company's address and the incorrect telephone number – consisted of a list of its various corporate identities, and reference to a 1000 for 1 reverse-stock split that was implemented in February 2006, at around the time the Company changed its name from Mercantile Gold Inc. to Anglo American.

The Company has been known by five names in the past four years. It operated as CADItech International before changing its name to AMC American Music Corp, Inc. in May 2004, for reasons we were unable to discover. Just five months later, the Company became Mercantile Gold Co. Mercantile Gold maintained a somewhat higher profile than its successor, Anglo Andean, although there is nothing to indicate that it enjoyed any measurable success or earned meaningful revenues. As Mercantile Gold, the Company maintained a website - which lingers in cyberspace – describing itself as a "mineral exploration and development company whose objective is to 'acquire, discover and develop world-class (multi-million ounce) gold and silver deposits'" and eventually, to sell them to, or develop them with "major international mining companies."

During its brief two year existence, Mercantile Gold proclaimed a series of acquisitions. In November 2004, for example, the Company announced that it had acquired the "Solaga silver project," located in the Villa Alta Mining District of Mexico, from an individual named Jose Perez Reynoso for $150,000 and 60,000 restricted shares of the Company's common stock. Although the Company said that the Solanga project had "excellent potential" for the discovery of silver with "bonanza values," there is nothing to suggest that the Company ever reaped significant revenues from the venture.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Mercantile Gold's "activities" was its relationship with Capital Hill Gold Company, another putative mining company whose hype outpaced performance. Mercantile Gold issued a press release in February 2005, announcing its acquisition of 50% of the "Mexican Hat" gold deposit, a project located in Southeastern Arizona, from Capital Hill Gold for $25,000.

StockPatrol.com readers already are familiar with the operations of Capital Hill Gold, and its efforts to extract valuable minerals from "Mexican Hat." Indeed, as we discovered when we wrote about Capital Hill Gold in October 2004, other developers, including Placer Dome, had been exploring the Mexican Hat property since 1930, with modest results. Although Capital Hill Gold initially expressed considerable optimism for the project, it retreated from those rosy predictions under pressure from the British Columbia Securities Commission, and conceded that its estimates and projections had not been independently verified. See Capital Hill Gold, Inc. - Is There Gold In Them Thar Hills? In February 2006, Capital Hill Gold (which changed its name to Amerimine Resources, Inc.) gave up its dreams of gold, and entered into a reverse-merger with American Unity Investments, Inc., a Nevada corporation. Amerimine now plans to enter the forestry business in the Peoples Republic of China.

The relationship between the two companies did not end with the swap of Mexican Hat. In April 2005, Mercantile Gold announced that Capital Hill had offered to acquire its Mexican subsidiary and the Solaga project in exchange for 500,000 restricted shares of Capital Hill Gold common stock. We found nothing that would indicate any of the swapped projects proved viable.

Meanwhile, Mercantile Gold continued to pursue additional projects. In March 2005, the Company disclosed that it had acquired the "Star Hill gold deposit," located near Tucson, Arizona. Although the Company later said that it had begun exploration on the properties, there is no indication that any of Mercantile Gold's efforts yielded significant minerals or generated revenues.

The Company's failure to return profits did not discourage stock promoters from jumping aboard the Mercantile Gold hype-wagon. One Internet stock picker, "The Green Baron Report," published by Evergreen Marketing, added Mercantile Gold to its list of "Stocks to Watch in December 2004, claiming that "our research indicates that Mercantile Gold Company is everything we have been looking for" in the mining sector. The Green Baron said it was "initiating coverage at this point because we foresee a move in the stock to much higher levels than could facilitate a stock split. We envision a similar trading pattern to U.S. Canadian Minerals prior to its recent pullback."

The Green Baron which received 6,000 shares of free trading stock from an unidentified "consultant" to Mercantile Gold, distributed several additional reports endorsing the stock. Of course, the Green Baron once called CMKM Diamonds, Inc. "The Stock Play Of A Lifetime" – and investors are still reeling from the failures of CMKM, which surrendered its public listing after regulators questioned CMKM's failure to file required public reports. The troubled history of U.S, Canadian Minerals –cited as an example by The Green Baron - also is well-documented. See Buddy Up! - CMKM Diamonds, Inc.; U.S. Canadian Minerals, Inc.; Juina Mining Corp.; St. George Metals, Inc.; and United Carina Resources Corp and CMKM Diamonds, Inc. - Tapped Out and Taps. Most recently, on March 14, 2006, U. S. Canadian learned that the SEC staff was poised to recommend a civil enforcement proceeding against that Company for possible violation of the federal securities laws, including fraudulent disclosures, failure to file reports in a timely manner and improper accounting practices.

The Green Baron was not alone. Other Internet "analysts" were picking Mercantile Gold. Wall Street Futures, owned by a stock site called Wall Street SmallCap Reporter, called Mercantille Gold a "stock to watch" in April 2005, citing the Company's plan to sell its Mexican operations to Capital Hill Gold – but failing to note Capital Hill's dismal track record.

There is nothing to suggest that Mercantile Gold rose to the occasion and justified the promoters' enthusiasm. The Company soon faded from view, supplanted in February 2006 by an enigmatic successor, Anglo Andean Mining.


Colombia, the Gem of MGM
The reign of Anglo Andean Mining was brief and silent. Unlike its predecessor, Anglo Andean did not issue press releases announcing new ventures. It did not disclose the identities of its officers, management team or principal stockholders. It did not reveal any business plan. Perhaps it did not have enough time. By the end of April 2006, Anglo Andean Mining had been transformed into Metro Gold Mines Mineral Resources, Inc. (MGM to its friends) – and the public relations machine was back at work.

MGM describes itself as a "new and promising company dedicated to mining and committed, not only to a successful venture, but with social and environmental responsibility." The Company says that it wants to be a "world class mining company" and will target Latin America, North America and Europe. For now, however, the Company's Business Plan focuses on the potential for developing mines in South America in general, and Colombia in particular. MGM's "initial mine" called ""La Esperanza," is located in Segovia, Colombia. Despite its South American connections, the Company has now moved its offices in the opposite direction - from Santa Fe Springs, California to 300 Tanbark Road, St. Davids, Ontario, Canada.

The Company, which states that it needs $1.5 million to expand operations, claims that it will begin to export gold by mid-2006. MGM's financial condition remains a question mark. The Company has not published audited financial statements. Fortunately for investors, the Pink Sheets now contain a modest amount of information on the Company. They identify MGM's CEO as Jairo Antonio Girardo and its President as Kenneth Lamb. Some of the information provided by the Pink Sheets is somewhat less clear. According to the Pink Sheets, the Company had issued 800 million shares as of February 14, 2006 (180 million of which were in the public float) - although it only was authorized to issue 400 million shares on that date.

MGM has not wasted any time getting its public relations machine in gear. On May 1, 2006 the Company issued a press release, announcing that shares of MGM had begun to trade on the Pink Sheets. The Company explained that it would concentrate on the development of precious metal mining companies – but offered no immediate insight into its history, operations, level of success or finances. The Company said that it would focus initially on the development of properties in South America and hoped to develop operations that would yield profits while also paying attention to workers' well-being and environmental concerns.

The press release did not address the name change from Anglo-Andean mining, or provide any insight into the terms of that transaction. In fact, a number of key questions remained to be answered. Had the owners of MGM acquired control of Anglo-Andean? If so, what had they paid and to whom – and what had they received in return? Are there now more than 800 million shares of common stock outstanding? Has the Company's certificate of incorporation been amended, and, if so, how many shares are now authorized? Who are the Company's principal shareholders and how did they acquire their stock?

The May 1st press release did provide an overview of the Company's new management team. It explained that Kenneth Lamb, MGM's President, has a sales and marketing background, has managed several "innovative" companies and served as a Professor of Academics for over twenty years. The Company did not identify any of the entities with which Mr. Lamb previously was associated or the educational institutions at which he served as a professor.

The press release offered a somewhat more fulsome picture of the Company's CEO, Jairo Giraldo. According to the May 1st release, Mr. Giraldo has a background in mining engineering, graduated from the University of Colombia, was certified in mining management by the American Management Association, worked for over ten years with the Ministry of Mines and Energy in Colombia, has served as an adviser to the Colombian government, and is a specialist in emerald, gold, silver and platinum mines.

The press releases have continued to flow. As markets were closing at 4:05 pm the next day, May 2, 2006, the Company issued a press release announcing its acquisition of "La Esperanza." MGM described Colombia as the highest gold yielding country in South America, but also "the most under-explored and under-developed," and declared that "[t]here are proven multi-million ounce deposits of rich gold under Colombian soil." MGM said that it was "working to modernize operations and maximize profitability of La Esperanza mine"

The Company seems to be banking on location, location, location. The May 2nd press release emphasized – repeatedly – that La Esperanza sits in Columbia's most fertile gold production region. Still, while the Company's CEO, Jairo Giraldo said that MGM was "highly pleased with what we have seen so far," the Company offered no details, independent studies or historical results that demonstrate La Esperanza has, or is likely to, yield a substantial amount of marketable gold.

MGM must have been pleased with the May 2nd press release. It issued a second release, repeating virtually verbatim the contents of the previous day's announcement, at 9:15 am on May 3rd – just as markets were set to open. What followed was impressive. Almost 20.7 million shares were traded on May 3rd, as prices bounced from 8 ½ cents to 13 cents before closing at slightly more than 9 cents a share. Could the vague set of press releases – which offered no comfort concerning the viability of the Company or La Esperanza – have precipitated this stampede? Or was there more?

There was this. At 7:00 am on May 3rd, sandwiched between the twin La Esperanza announcements, an outfit called IO Circuit recommended MGM based upon a "$.24 price target from Market Advisors." This press release, like those issued by the Company, noted Columbia's potential as a gold producing nation, and repeated the mantra that La Esperanza was located in Columbia's richest gold producing region. A second press release, issued 10 minutes later, urged investors to "have a look at Metro Golden Mines Mineral Resources."

Who was behind the sudden hype? Growth Stock Alert, an Internet promotional tool owned by an entity called Iron Consulting, had been paid $16,000 by Equity Alliance Int. LLC "for its marketing and consulting services." The report offered no fresh insight; it merely regurgitated information from the Company's press releases and website and reiterated the potential for gold production in Columbia. It provided no details of the Company's operations, history, or financial condition. Nothing that would remotely support a $.24 cent price target or the monsoon of trading that followed.

The daily press releases have continued. On May 4th, MGM announced that a new lead geologist had been appointed to oversee operations at La Esperanza. Again, the Company seized the opportunity to remind readers of Colombia's gold producing potential. And the promoters were back at it as well. An outfit called Stock Market Alerts LLC issued an early morning press release extolling the virtues of the Company, La Esperanza and the prospects for gold mining in Colombia. Stock Market Alerts was paid $5,000 to promote the Company by an entity identified only as Equity Alliance International LLC. Growth Stock Alert, which issued its glowing report earlier in the week, joined in, sending out another press release touting MGM. Growth Alert concedes that it was paid $895 by an unidentified third-party to distribute the good word about MGM.

Once again, trading of MGM shares was brisk – but the results were distressing, particularly to those public investors who bought into the hype of the past week and paid up to 13 cents a share. Almost 23 million shares changed hands on May 4th, but prices plummeted by more than 50%, closing at around 4 cents a share.

With 800 million shares issued (at least according to the Pink Sheets), MGM's market cap has varied widely in recent days – ranging from more than $80 million to about $32 million at May 4th's close. How much is this Company worth? Is "La Esperanza" as fertile as Sutter's mines? Or have we just witnessed a frenzy of activity fueled by unrealistic expectations and calculated to benefit as-yet unidentified individuals who held millions of the Company's shares and welcomed an opportunity to dump them. The Company certainly has made a splash. Will investors be left treading water?