They did, Portly, but (leaving aside the question whether that was necessary or not, which remains open as far as I can see) when they did make an offer, what was the reason for delaying the response long enough to prompt an ultimatum at that stage? It can't be that Moores was doing due diligence himself, because he should have been doing that while DIC were doing theirs. To add insult to injury, he didn't do ANY when Hicks came on the scene but, by his own account, relied on Gillett's word alone.