Latest news with #WiseTechGlobalLtd.
Forbes
26-03-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Australia's Largest Pension Fund Sells $367 Million WiseTech Shares On Governance Concerns
Richard White, chief executive officer of WiseTech Global Ltd., gestures while he speaks during the ... More Morgan Stanley Australia Summit in Sydney, Australia, on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. The Summit will continue through June 13. Photographer: Brent Lewin/Bloomberg AustralianSuper—the country's largest pension fund—sold A$580 million ($367 million) shares of WiseTech Global in recent weeks amid concerns over corporate governance at the Sydney-based freight--software company. The divestment comes after WiseTech appointed its founder Richard White as executive chairman last month, enabling the tycoon to take back control of the company four months after quitting as CEO following a series of damaging media reports, including one that he paid millions of dollars to a former partner to settle allegations of inappropriate behavior. White's comeback was announced in February in tandem with the release of WiseTech's first-half to December results that showed a 38% jump in net income to $106 million from the previous year. The company's board said this month it will not take action against the billionaire founder. 'We have sold because recent developments have not met our expectations,' Shaun Manuell, head of Australian equities at AustralianSuper, said in an emailed statement. 'We may reconsider our position should circumstances change.' AustralianSuper, which manages more than A$365 billion, held a 2.3% stake in WiseTech in October when allegations of White's inappropriate behavior first came to light. Its ownership fell to 1.9% last month. 'We needed to see a sensible transition plan that got the balance right between governance and managing the founder's role over time in order to continue to remain a shareholder,' Manuell said. WiseTech shares have fallen almost 30% since White's return. His real-time net worth declined to $7.2 billion from $10.1 billion when Forbes published the list of Australia's 50 richest in February.
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
WiseTech Board Quits as Founder White Wins Power Struggle
(Bloomberg) -- WiseTech Global Ltd.'s founder and largest shareholder Richard White appears to have triumphed in a high-level power dispute after almost every board member quit in a disagreement over the billionaire's role at the company. The shares slumped. Trump Targets $128 Billion California High-Speed Rail Project Trump Asserts Power Over NYC, Proclaims 'Long Live the King' Trump to Halt NY Congestion Pricing by Terminating Approval Airbnb Billionaire Offers Pre-Fab Homes for LA Fire Victims NYC's Congestion Pricing Pulls In $48.6 Million in First Month Four of WiseTech's six directors, including Chairman Richard Dammery, will leave on Feb. 26, the company said Monday. The resignations follow 'intractable differences in the board and differing views' around White's position. The bombshell announcement, almost unheard of in corporate Australia, cements White's influence at the freight-software company he founded and led for three decades. WiseTech stock tumbled as much as 24% in early Sydney trading as the company also said revenue would be at the bottom of its forecast range because of key product delays caused by doubts abouts White's role. The stock was down 23% at A$93.30 at 11:27 a.m. local time, valuing the business at A$31 billion ($20 billion). White, who owns 37% of WiseTech, was forced to step down as chief executive officer in October after a string of allegations of misconduct, sparking a board review of governance and behavioral standards, and putting his future in jeopardy. Four months on, the board has disintegrated and White is back at the top of the business. 'For shareholders, there was tension between keeping talent and corporate governance issues,' said Matthew Haupt, portfolio manager at Wilson Asset Management in Sydney, who holds WiseTech shares. 'Talent has won the day at the expense of corporate governance.' Still, White's victory has come at some personal cost. Monday's share price slump wiped the equivalent of $1.8 billion from his fortune in just 20 minutes. White's total wealth is now around $7.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. In two days, when the four directors officially leave, White will help present the company's half-year results as 'Founder and Founding CEO,' WiseTech said. The other three departing directors are Lisa Brock, Michael Malone and Fiona Pak-Poy. White is so closely associated with WiseTech's value that cutting him loose might have risked an even larger stock market rout. When he stood down in October, WiseTech agreed to retain him on a 10-year contract as a consultant to soothe investor concerns that the company might lose its most valuable asset. Enforcing governance standards at listed entities becomes complicated for boards when an executive they oversee is also the major shareholder to whom they answer. In WiseTech's case, many investors were more worried that White would be marginalized by the board than they were about allegations of misconduct. 'There were great concerns in the market about whether Richard White was being pushed out,' said Paul Mason, managing director of technology & gaming research at Evans and Partners Pty. Mason said any pressure on WiseTech's shares Monday probably reflected the revenue outlook rather than opposition to White's involvement with the company. WiseTech is a key provider of the software that coordinates logistics and shipping across the world. It claims the majority of the world's biggest global logistics providers and freight forwarders among its clients, including DHL, China's Sinotrans, Japan's Nippon Express and APL Logistics. Behavior Claims White has pulled off what last year looked like an improbable victory. According to local media reports, he paid millions of dollars to a former partner to settle allegations of inappropriate behavior. White also had a years-long relationship with an employee before gifting her a A$7 million house in Melbourne, while a former board member had accused White of intimidation and bullying, according to the Australian Financial Review. The board's preliminary findings into these allegations, released in November, were that White's behavior couldn't be characterized as bullying or intimidating. It concluded that he 'has a direct approach and from time to time is involved in robust and challenging discussions.' The review described this process as 'creative abrasion.' Two fresh confidential complaints this month about White, made by an employee and a supplier, compounded the pressure on WiseTech's directors to take more substantive action. But White has come out on top. In a note to investors, Citigroup Inc. analyst Siraj Ahmed said it was 'positive that White is still with the company.' But Ahmed said the resignation of most of the board raised questions about the nature of the latest allegations against White, and the differing views among the directors about his role. WiseTech said Mike Gregg will start as a director on Feb. 26, having previously served on the board between 2006 and 2022. Gregg was one of the first outside investors in WiseTech, and still holds 4.7 million shares — worth around A$572 million at the last closing price — according to the company's latest annual report. When Gregg left the board in 2022, White posted a video to 'pay a special and heartfelt thankyou for his early investment, his trust and intellectual effort in his 16 years of service.' The remnants of WiseTech's board now date back to White's early years: Maree Isaacs is a company co-founder and has been a director for more than 30 years. Charles Gibbon was one of WiseTech's earliest outside investors. He joined the board in 2006 and was chairman for more than a decade. --With assistance from Georgina McKay, Carmeli Argana and Ainsley Thomson. (Adds decline in White's personal fortune in seventh paragraph, comment from Citigroup analyst.) Walmart Wants to Be Something for Everyone in a Divided America Why Private Equity Is Eyeing Your Nest Egg Meet Seven of America's Top Personal Finance Influencers Can Dr. Phil's Streaming Makeover Find an Audience in the MAGA Era? How Med Spas Conquered America ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign in to access your portfolio
