World

New Zealand – a World Leader in Vaping Legislation

Published

5 years ago

September 23, 2020

New Zealand’s Ministry of Health and other organisations are striving to reduce the number of New Zealanders who take up smoking, and they are actively encouraging existing smokers to quit. One way many people are succeeding in their quest to quit is via a transition to vaping.

For smokers who are committed to quitting, visiting a reputable NZ vape shop to source nicotine-based smoking products is the first step in their journey to better health and a smoke-free future.

Smoking in NZ

Rates of smoking in NZ dropped from 25% to 12% between 1997 and 2018. While there are still almost half a million adult smokers in NZ, double that number have quit. Yet 15% of young adults aged 18-24 still smoke, as do 31% of Maori adults (this is particularly concerning as Maori traditionally did not smoke, and they suffer the health consequences of smoking more than other population groups) and 21% of Pacific Islanders. Men are more inclined to smoke than women, and people aged between 35-44 are most likely to be smokers.

Vaping

A vape is an alternative to cigarette smoking. It is an electronic device which heats a liquid to a vapour or aerosol. The user inhales this vapour. It requires no burning of tobacco – which is the most physically harmful (and socially unacceptable) aspect of cigarette smoking.

Vaping delivers nicotine in a less harmful way than cigarettes. It is not completely harmless – but it is a significantly safer alternative than smoking. Vapers also have the option of selecting the strength of nicotine in their vape – enabling gradual weaning from nicotine itself and also from the physical and psychological habit of smoking itself.

While it is not intended for use by non-smokers, vaping has the potential to effectively help smokers quit their habit.

Vaping Legislation in NZ

New Zealand now leads the world in vaping legislation. On August 6, 2020, landmark legislation passed in The Smoke-free Environments and Regulated Products (Vaping) Amendment Bill.

This Bill addresses concern within the community about the use and accessibility of vaping products, which are strictly regulated or even banned in many other countries worldwide. This new legislation strikes a sensible and effective balance between providing access to vaping as a regulated alternative to smoking cigarettes for existing smokers, while actively discouraging its use by children and teenagers.

It is an offence to sell nicotine or vaping products to any person under the age of eighteen years.

The New Zealand government has placed itself as a world leader in recognising the need for adult smokers to have access to not only information and advice, but also to viable alternatives to cigarette smoking.

Vapespot is the leading online Pod Based vape shop in NZ. Founder “Sunny” states, “Vapespot is the easiest way to “switch it up”. We provide a curated selection of nicotine-based products to support a person’s lifestyle and commitment to stop smoking cigarettes. We make it easy to reduce the reliance on cigarettes and ultimately quit smoking altogether”.

Smoking compromises health, shortens lifespans, and costs individuals, families, and communities money. Smoking also harms the environment – 4.5 trillion cigarette butts are discarded onto the ground and into our waterways globally every year.

Quitting is hard. For many people seeking to quit smoking, transitioning to vaping is an important and effective first step. New Zealanders now have this option at their fingertips.

World

TRG Chairman Khaishgi and CEO Aslam implicated in $150 million fraud

Published

7 days ago

June 23, 2025

Jenny Jackson

In a scathing 52-page decision, the Sindh High Court has found that TRG Pakistan’s management was acting fraudulently and that Bermuda-based Greentree Holdings historic and prospective purchase of TRG shares were illegal, fraudulent and oppressive.

The Sindh High Court has further directed TRGP to immediately hold board elections that have been overdue and illegally withheld by the existing board since January 14, 2025.

In the landmark ruling, the Sindh High Court has blocked the attempted takeover of TRG Pakistan Limited by Greentree Holdings, declaring that the shares acquired by Greentree, nearly 30% of TRG’s stock, were unlawfully financed using TRG’s funds in violation of Section 86(2) of the Companies Act 2017.

“Having concluded that the affairs of TRGP are being conducted in an unlawful and fraudulent manner and in a manner oppressive to members such as the Petitioner (Zia Chishti), the case falls for corrective orders under sub-section (2) of section 286 of the Companies Act,” Justice Adnan Iqbal Chaudhry concluded.

The case was brought by TRGP former CEO and founder Pakistani-American technology entrepreneur Zia Chishti against TRG Pakistan, its associate TRG International and TRG International’s wholly-owned shell company Greentree Limited. In addition, the case named AKD Securities for managing Greentree’s illegal tender offer as well as various regulators requiring that they act to perform their regulatory duties.

The case centred around the dispute that shell company Greentree Limited was fraudulently using TRG Pakistan’s own funds to purchase TRG Pakistan’s shares in order to give control to Zia Chishti’s former partners Mohammed Khaishgi, Hasnain Aslam and Pinebridge Investments.

According to the case facts, the Chairman of TRG Pakistan Mohammed Khaishgi and the CEO of TRG Pakistan Hasnain Aslam masterminded the $150 million fraud. They did so together with Hong Kong based fund manager Pinebridge who has two nominees on TRG Pakistan’s board, Mr. John Leone and Mr. Patrick McGinnis.

According to the court papers, Khaishgi, Aslam, Leone, and McGinnis set up a shell company called Greentree which they secretly controlled and from which they started buying up shares of TRG Pakistan. The fraud was that Greentree was using TRG Pakistan’s funds itself. The idea was to give Khaishgi, Aslam, Leone, and McGinnis control over TRG Pakistan even though they owned less than 1% of the company, lawyers of the petitioner told the court.

This was all part of a broader battle for control over TRG Pakistan that is raging between Khaishgi, Aslam, Leone, and McGinnis on one side and TRG Pakistan founder Zia Chishti on the other side. Zia Chishti has been trying to retake control of TRG Pakistan after he was forced to resign in 2021 based on sexual misconduct allegations made by a former employee of his. This year those allegations were shown to be without basis in litigation that Chishti launched in the United Kingdom against The Telegraph newspaper which had printed the allegations. The Telegraph was forced to apologize for 13 separate articles it published about Chishti and paid him damages and legal costs.

After Chishti resigned in 2021, Khaishgi, Aslam, Leone, and McGinnis moved to take total control over TRG Pakistan and its various subsidiaries including TRG International and to block out Chishti. The Sindh High Court’s ruling today has reversed that effort, ruling the scheme fraudulent, illegal, and oppressive.

It now appears that Zia Chishti will take control of TRG Pakistan in short order when elections are called. He and his family are now the largest shareholders with over 30% interest. He is closely followed by companies related to Jahangir Siddiqui & Company which have over a 20% interest. The result appears to be a complete vindication for Zia Chishti and damning for his rivals Aslam, Khaishgi, Leone, and McGinnis who have been ruled to have been conducting a fraud.

TRG Pakistan’s share price declined by over 8% on the news on heavy volume. Market experts say that this was because the tender offer at Rs 75 was gone and that now shares would trade closer to their natural value. Presently the shares are trading at Rs 59 per share.

According to the court ruling, since 2021, shell company Greentree had purchased approximately 30% of TRG shares using $80 million of TRG’s own money, which means that that the directors of TRG Pakistan allowed company assets to be funneled through offshore affiliates TRG International and Greentree for acquiring TRG’s shares – a move deemed both fraudulent and oppressive to minority shareholders. The Sindh High Court also found illegal Greentree’s further attempt to purchase another 35% of TRG shares using another $70 million of TRG’s money in a tender offer.

The ruling is a major victory for the tech entrepreneur Zia Chishti against his former partners and the legal ruling paves the way for him to take control of TRG in a few weeks.