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Business Times
24-07-2025
- Business
- Business Times
SingPost directors quizzed about CEO search and company's future strategies at AGM
[SINGAPORE] National postal service provider Singapore Post's (SingPost) board was pressed by shareholders at its annual general meeting (AGM) on Wednesday (Jul 23) for more information about the path forward as its search for a new chief executive officer drags on. Meanwhile, chairman Simon Israel, at his last SingPost AGM before stepping down, disclosed that the decision to divest SingPost Centre, the group's flagship headquarters building in Paya Lebar, now lies with the reconstituted board, which will review whether the property is non-core to the group and is to be sold. He and other directors were quizzed at the listed firm's 33rd AGM held at Suntec Singapore about the reset strategy that shareholders have been looking forward to since they approved the divestment of the Australian logistics business Freight Management Holdings for A$1 billion (about S$845 million) in March. They were also queried about the CEO who would replace the dismissed predecessor and be tasked with executing the reset strategy. Former CEO Vincent Phang was fired together with group chief financial officer Vincent Yik and CEO of international business unit Li Yu in December 2024 over the alleged mishandling of a whistle-blower's report. The questions from shareholders came as the presentation at the AGM left them none the wiser about SingPost's plans or strategies to replace the divested Australian logistics business, which had been a core business and key financial contributor. One shareholder said the reconstituted seven-member board, including incoming chairman Teo Swee Lian, did not have an idea as yet about the path forward, despite the board renewal and the passage of time. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up 'We came here with a lot of expectation... I feel very disappointed... We already know the current situation, but what's next? What kind of CEO are you looking for to run whatever remains (under) SingPost? 'You tell us to be patient. We have been patient all this while. Today is an important day; I thought you should have at least given us some guidance that (would signal) there is hope for SingPost.' This shareholder also asked the recently appointed non-executive, non-independent director Gan Siok Hoon – deputy group chief corporate officer of Singtel – to share the views of the telecommunications company, considering it is SingPost's major shareholder. Israel pointed out that Gan is not the spokesperson for Singtel. Questions over a new CEO Another shareholder asked the board what kind of CEO it is looking for, and suggested that a new helmsman be appointed only when the board has a clear strategy. 'Because your strategy is still in a little bit of a flux, you may hire a CEO and end up with the CEO (having) nothing much to run… Should you be a bit cautious in terms of hiring the CEO at this point, or should you continue to run with an interim CEO (until the board has) more certainty? Because I think the kind of CEO you need also depends on the strategy that you think the company should pursue.' Teo asked for patience and the opportunity for her board to do a review as these are 'not easy issues'. Also, she flagged that there will be a conversation with 'very important stakeholders' on what to do. She added: 'I do not know of any high-performing organisation that wants to continue the situation without the CEO. I think that's not best practice, really. So we do have to search for a CEO. We're very fortunate, we have the candidates… We will, in due course, identify who the person will be.' The CEO must have leadership quality, think out of the box with a free hand, and be enterprising, Teo elaborated. 'We're looking for people who can actually take a company which is not in the best situation, and still find what can be done in order to get a pathway for (us) to be sustainable in the long term.' A shareholder suggested that SingPost take the privatisation route and liquidate its assets, including SingPost Centre, and return capital to shareholders. But Israel replied that privatisation is not within the board's scope of work and that it requires an external actor. Regarding SingPost Centre The outgoing chairman also told shareholders that the SingPost Centre would be 'the last big piece' to unlock value, after SingPost sold its Australian logistics business in March and its freight-forwarding business this week, as well as the earlier sale-and-leaseback bid of 10 HDB shophouses for S$50 million. SingPost Centre was defined as 'non-core' following a strategic review in 2023-2024, because the board did not think SingPost was a property company, Israel said. The directors have not decided on the timing of the divestment even though the property, last valued at about S$1 billion, has since been earmarked for sale. Israel pointed out that the board has never set out a timeline for the sale of this asset. He added: 'Now that brings us to today's circumstances... It's quite clear that the short-term earnings of SingPost, while it works its way through its strategy and what the future holds and which options it's going to pursue, are underwritten by the property business. 'So it really will be for the board in the future to define whether that remains non-core, it becomes core, or whatever the options are around that property.' The business contributed an operating profit of S$48.4 million for the full year ended Mar 31 – more than any other segment, and higher than the total group operating profit of S$44.3 million after accounting for operating losses in some segments. All 13 resolutions were approved at the AGM that lasted more than 1.5 hours, including for a special dividend of S$0.09 per share to be paid out of the sale proceeds of the Australian logistics business. The counter closed up 2.3 per cent or S$0.015 at S$0.655 on Wednesday.
Business Times
23-07-2025
- Business
- Business Times
SingPost directors quizzed about future strategies and CEO at AGM
[SINGAPORE] National postal service provider Singapore Post's (SingPost) board was pressed by shareholders at its annual general meeting (AGM) on Wednesday (Jul 23) for more information about the path forward as its search for a new chief executive officer drags on. Meanwhile, chairman Simon Israel, at his last SingPost AGM before stepping down, disclosed that the decision of divesting SingPost Centre, the flagship headquarters building in Paya Lebar, now lies with the reconstituted board, which will review whether the property is non-core to the group and is to be sold. He and other directors were quizzed at the listed firm's 33rd AGM held at Suntec Singapore about the reset strategy that shareholders have been looking forward to since they approved the divestment of the Australian logistics business Freight Management Holdings for A$1 billion (about S$845 million) in March. They were also queried about the CEO who would replace the dismissed predecessor and be tasked with executing the reset strategy. Group CEO Vincent Phang was fired together with group chief financial officer Vincent Yik and CEO of international business unit Li Yu in December 2024 over the alleged mishandling of a whistle-blower's report. The questions from shareholders came as the presentation at the AGM left them none the wiser about SingPost's plans or strategies to replace the divested Australian logistics business, which had been a core business and key financial contributor. This caused a shareholder to express his displeasure that the reconstituted seven-member board, including incoming chairman Teo Swee Lian, does not have an idea as yet about the path forward, despite the board renewal and the passage of time. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up 'We came here with a lot of expectation... I feel very disappointed... We already know the current situation, but what's next? What kind of CEO are you looking for to run whatever remains in SingPost? 'You tell us to be patient. We have been patient all this while. Today is an important day; I thought you should have at least given us some guidance that (would signal) there is hope for SingPost.' This shareholder also asked the recently appointed non-executive, non-independent director Gan Siok Hoon – deputy group chief corporate officer of Singtel – to share the views of the telecommunications company, considering it is SingPost's major shareholder. Israel pointed out that Gan is not the spokesperson for Singtel. Questions over a new CEO Another shareholder also asked the board about the kind of CEO it is looking for, and suggested that a new helmsman be appointed only when the board has a clear strategy. 'Because your strategy is still in a little bit of a flux, you may hire a CEO and end up with the CEO (having) nothing much to run… Should you be a bit cautious in terms of hiring the CEO at this point, or should you continue to run with an interim CEO (until the board has) more certainty? Because I also think the kind of CEO you need also depends on the strategy that you think the company should pursue.' Teo asked for patience and the opportunity for her board to do a review as these are 'not easy issues'. Also, she flagged that there will be a conversation with 'very important stakeholders' on what to do. She added: 'I do not know of any high-performing organisation that wants to continue the situation without the CEO. I think that's not best practice, really. So we do have to search for a CEO. We're very fortunate, we have the candidates… We will, in due course, identify who the person will be.' The CEO must have leadership quality, think out of the box with a free hand, and be enterprising, Teo elaborated. 'We're looking for people who can actually take a company which is not in the best situation, and still find what can be done in order to get a pathway for ourselves to be sustainable in the long term.' A shareholder suggested that SingPost take the privatisation route and liquidate its assets, including SingPost Centre, and return capital to shareholders. But Israel replied that privatisation is not within the board's scope of work and that it requires an external actor. Regarding SingPost Centre The outgoing chairman also told shareholders that the SingPost Centre would be 'the last big piece' to unlock value, after SingPost sold its Australian logistics business in March and its freight-forwarding business this week, as well as the earlier sale-and-leaseback bid of 10 HDB shophouses for S$50 million. SingPost Centre was defined as 'non-core' following a strategic review in 2023-2024, because the board did not think SingPost was a property company, Israel said. The directors have not decided on the timing of the divestment even though the property, last valued at about S$1 billion, has since been earmarked for sale. Israel pointed out that the board has never set out a timeline for the sale of this asset. He added: 'Now that brings us to today's circumstances... It's quite clear that the short-term earnings of SingPost, while it works its way through its strategy and what the future holds and which options it's going to pursue, are underwritten by the property business. 'So it really will be for the board in the future to define whether that remains non-core, it becomes core, or whatever the options are around that property.' The business contributed a full-year operating profit of S$48.4 million – more than any other segment, and higher than the total group operating profit of S$44.3 million after accounting for operating losses in some segments. All 13 resolutions were approved at the AGM that lasted more than 1.5 hours, including for a special dividend of S$0.09 per share to be paid out of the sale proceeds of the Australian logistics business. The counter closed 2.3 per cent or S$0.015 up at S$0.655 on Wednesday.
Straits Times
26-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
SingPost halves sacked CEO Vincent Phang's pay to $616,400
SingPost has yet to announce a replacement for Mr Vincent Phang, who was dismissed in December for the negligent handling of a whistleblower report. PHOTO: SINGAPORE POST SINGAPORE - Former Singapore Post (SingPost) group chief executive Vincent Phang, who was dismissed over the mishandling of a whistleblower complaint, received $616,400 in remuneration for the financial year ended March 31, the company's latest annual report disclosed. It did not indicate if Mr Phang, who was fired by SingPost on Dec 21, had his salary pro-rated. He had received about $1.2 million in the previous financial year. According to the annual report released on June 24, the payout comprised $570,600 in fixed salary, $10,500 in provident fund contributions, and $35,200 in benefits. The company's benefits generally include medical and flexible allowances, as well as other perks such as car allowance and long service awards, where applicable. Fired along with Mr Phang was former group chief financial officer Mr Vincent Yik, and former chief executive of SingPost's international business unit, Mr Li Yu, after the top executives were found to be negligent in the handling of the internal investigations over a whistleblower's report. The exact remuneration for Mr Li was not disclosed in the report. Instead, he was broadly categorised under the $250,000 to below $500,000 salary band, with the stated amount covering his remuneration from April 1 to Dec 21 in 2024. As for Mr Yik, his pay was not reported individually. Instead, the annual report stated that an aggregate of about $950,000 was paid to him and Mr Shahrin Abdol Salam, SingPost's former Singapore CEO, who resigned in February – less than a year after taking up the role on May 1, 2024. The annual report also disclosed that total compensation paid to SingPost's non-executive directors exceeded $1.3 million. Of this, $288,600 went to outgoing chairman Mr Simon Israel, while nine others received between $10,100 and $176,000 each. The report also noted that outgoing chairman Simon Israel, 72, declined an ex-gratia payment of $250,000 proposed by board 'in recognition of the extra time and effort' he expended during SingPost's leadership transition. Mr Israel, who has chaired the board for nine years, will be succeeded by Mr Teo Swee Lian, 65, following SingPost's annual general meeting (AGM) on July 23. Five directors, including Ms Teo, are also seeking re-election at the AGM. Both Ms Teo and Mr Phang, who stepped down as a non-executive, non-independent director with effect from Jan 12, were not listed among the directors who received board compensation. Mr Phang's replacement has yet to be announced by the postal service provider. What's next While acknowledging the challenges of the past year, Mr Israel signalled a forward-looking shift for SingPost as it prepares for a new phase of transformation under fresh leadership. Despite booking a net profit of $245.1 million, boosted by the one-off divestment of its Australia business, the group saw its underlying net profit fall 40.3 per cent to $24.8 million, with a net loss of some $500,000 in the second half. Mr Israel described these figures as evidence of the 'persistent pressures facing the group' and the need for decisive restructuring. Looking ahead, he warned that the operating environment is likely to remain volatile. But he stressed that SingPost has taken steps to reset its cost base and streamline operations, including the reintegration of its international cross-border business into the Singapore unit to unlock synergies. To support future growth, the group is betting on automation and eCommerce logistics. A $30 million investment has been committed to scaling up its Regional eCommerce Logistics Hub, which will eventually handle up to 400,000 parcels daily – a three-fold increase in capacity. But the domestic postal business remains under strain, with discussions ongoing between SingPost and the government on how to ensure the long-term financial viability of postal services, including its Post Office Network. Nevertheless, Mr Israel said that SingPost is undertaking a 'strategic reset' which will be finalised after a new group CEO is appointed. 'Upon conclusion, the board will set out the new strategy for all stakeholders,' he added. Shares of SingPost rose 2.5 per cent, or 1.5 cents, to 62 cents as at 3.53pm on June 26. THE BUSINESS TIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
