Bermuda-based investment company WP Stewart & Co., Ltd. said last night it would cease trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), as it announced a net loss of $31.2 million for the third quarter of 2008.

And it has applied to change its secondary listing with the Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX) to a primary listing.

The NYSE has informed the company that it had failed to comply with exchange rules since its market capitalisation fell below $25 million over a 30-day trading period. WP Stewart's shares will therefore be suspended from trading from Friday morning.

WP Stewart said it would not challenge the delisting order and intends to file by the end of this month with the Securities and Exchange Commission to terminate the registration of its shares.

The company expects its shares will continue to trade 'over the counter', via the Pink Sheets, and on the BSX.

WP Stewart added that it had trimmed its workforce to 43 and intended to focus its research efforts primarily in Bermuda and New York and "accordingly the expense base with respect to its operations in London has been significantly decreased", the statement added.

"2008 has been a challenging year for WP Stewart, exacerbated by the dramatic fall in the stock market in the second half of the year," the company's chief executive officer Mark Phelps said yesterday.

"Nevertheless, against this background the company has continued to restructure itself and has performed relatively well for its clients compared to the market. We have also welcomed Arrow Capital Management as a significant new shareholder through the investment by several of its funds. As we move into 2009, it is clear that we need to take further steps to reduce costs, consolidate the corporate structure and enter into new distribution arrangements that will enable us once again to grow our assets under management."

The deregistering of its NYSE shares would help WP Stewart to significantly cut costs, Mr. Phelps added. It will trim the expense on NYSE reporting requirements and the need to comply with the accounting requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, described by the company as "disproportionately expensive and unduly complex in relation to the company's business, earnings and size".

The company has seen its assets under management fall over the past year to around $1.4 billion, by December 31, WP Stewart said yesterday. At the end of 2006, it was managing around $8.1 billion.

The $31.2 million loss for the quarter ending September 30, 2008, broke down to 62 cents per share. The net loss for the first nine months of 2008 was $42.8 million, or 90 cents per share.

In New York Stock Exchange trading yesterday, WP Stewart shares rose 28 cents, or nearly 14 percent, to close on $2.30, giving the company a market value of $11.58 million.