to Harry Oppenheimer and founder of Gem Diamonds; Guinea Loan Agreement Background In April 2011, following a period during which Palladino advised the Government of Guinea on renovating and invigorating Guinea's mining industry, Palladino Capital agreed a US$25 million loan to finance the establishment of a state-run mining company. The agreement was signed by Mohamed Lamine Fofana, the Guinean mining minister and Guinea's finance minister, Kerfalla Yansane and Samuel Mebiane, who was listed as a "proxy holder" for Palladino. The terms of the loan included a conversion clause which meant that if the Guinea government defaulted, they could repay the debt by conversion or 'payment in kind'. This could have taken the form of an equivalent value in shares in the operations of one of the subsidiaries of the national mining company to a maximum of 30% stake. In January 2012, Palladino C2 wrote to the Minister of Mines requiring an account of how the funds had been utilised. In the absence of a reply, formal notice was given by Palladino C2 requiring an immediate repayment of the loan, with interest. The loan was repaid on 11 July 2012. Allegations about the Loan Agreement In June 2012, the Sunday Times published an article about the Loan Agreement, and focussed on the default provision included in the agreement. It added that the loan had never been publicly revealed to Guineans, or ticked off in the national budget, although President Alpha Condé has said that "contracts that commit Guinea will be published on the Internet." Former Guinean Minister of Mines, Mahmoud Thiam was quoted in various newspapers as alleging that the deal was a quid pro quo in return for Condé campaign support. The Mail & Guardian alleged that as a result of the loan to Guinea, Guinea would not be permitted to sell any state interest in a mining asset without first offering the option to Palladino and should the firm wish to acquire a stake in a mining asset, it would be granted the privilege of a six-month negotiating period. If a deal could not then be struck, Guinea would only be allowed to negotiate with a third party without first right of refusal from Palladino. Response from Palladino Following the publication of the Sunday Times article, Hennig's company, Palladino, issued a number of public statements about the Loan Agreement. Palladino highlighted that the Loan Agreement contained customary default provisions