Latest news with #independentDirectors
South China Morning Post
18 hours ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
To motivate independent directors, put them in the spotlight
[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] Advertisement Many countries require listed companies to have independent directors sitting on their boards. These directors have no ties to the company, are not on the executive team, and do not participate in daily operations, ensuring ethical and effective management while balancing stakeholder interests. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for these overseers to be besieged by multiple issues that prevent them from performing their roles. Among many possible reasons, controlling shareholders often immensely influence the nomination of independent directors, who receive meagre compensations, giving them less motivation to exert monitoring efforts. A lack of expertise could also be the cause, as many independent directors are industry outsiders with little business experience. Regardless, their oversight function is vital in ensuring corporate governance. George Yang, Professor of the School of Accountancy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) Business School, tries to address this issue. He investigates the effect of China's 'sunshine enforcement', where the regulators use public enforcement mechanisms to encourage independent directors to step up their game. The concept is based on increasing transparency and public visibility in enforcing laws to improve accountability and compliance. In a study titled Public enforcement through independent directors, Professor Yang and his co-authors, Li Xiaoxi and Rao Pingui of Jinan University, as well as Yue Heng of Singapore Management University, examined the role of independent directors in responding to a comment letter, a publicly shared inquiry from regulators regarding companies' filings, disclosures, or compliance with regulations. Specifically, the researchers look into certain transactions between companies and parties with pre-existing relationships. Such transactions, known as related-party transactions, are particularly concerning in emerging markets like China as they can lead to expropriation, an unfair practice where controlling shareholders take advantage of their position to benefit themselves at the expense of minority shareholders. Advertisement 'Using data from China, we find that firms receiving comment letters concerning related-party transactions from stock exchanges significantly reduce their related-party transactions in subsequent years,' says Professor Yang. 'Managers, including independent directors, particularly care about their 'face'. They would be ashamed if they received sanctions from the market regulators, which would result if the issues in the comment letters were not properly resolved.'
Forbes
09-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Singapore Billionaire Kwek Family's City Developments Fails To Buy Out M&C New Zealand
Millennium & Copthorne New Zealand bought the Mayfair Hotel Christchurch in January. The property ... More will be rebranded. City Developments—controlled by billionaire Kwek Leng Beng and his family—failed in its NZ$71 million ($42 million) bid to buy out Millennium & Copthorne Hotels New Zealand's minority shareholders. The Singapore-listed property developer held almost 84% of M&C New Zealand at the close of the offer on Thursday, missing the 90% threshold it needed to delist the hotel company, M&C New Zealand said in a regulatory filing. City Developments had originally offered in January to buy the remaining 24% of the hotel operator for NZ$2.25 a piece but the offer was raised to NZ$2.80 last month as independent directors deemed the first offer as too low. Despite the improved offer, the independent directors urged minority shareholders to reject the offer, which is still below the fair value of at least NZ$4.40 apiece that was assessed by an independent adviser. 'The offer undervalues the benefits which can be expected as the tourism and property markets recover,' Leslie Preston, chair of the independent directors committee, has said in a letter to shareholders. The failure to delist M&C New Zealand is another setback for City Developments, which is still reeling from a family feud that has dragged the company's shares to near historic lows and raised doubts whether the company can revive profits the were hurt by rising borrowing costs and slowing residential sales. A dispute between City Developments CEO Sherman Kwek and his father, Kwek Leng Beng (who is City Developments' executive chairman) became public in late February after Leng Beng sued Sherman for control of the Singapore-listed property developer. While the case has been withdrawn and both parties agreed to set aside their differences, the feud had cast the limelight on one of Singapore's wealthiest families with an estimated net worth of $11.5 billion. The rift had also cast a shadow at the company's shareholders' meeting last month.
RNZ News
08-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels remains publicly-listed company after failed takeover
CDL Hotels owns 75 percent of Millennium & Copthorne Hotels. Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook Hotel operator Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (MCK) will remain a publicly-listed company for now, after its majority owner CDL's full takeover offer closed without reaching the threshold for compulsory acquisition. Singapore-based CDL and the independent directors of MCK have been at loggerheads over the takeover proposal, with the independent directors saying the offers proposed to date were too low. The latest offer of $2.80 a share to acquire all ordinary shares in MCK closed at 5pm Thursday. MCK said CDL did not reach the 90 percent threshold, which under the Takeovers Code would have allowed it to compulsorily acquire all remaining ordinary shares. CDL said it had increased its shareholding to just under 84 percent of MCK, after receiving acceptances for just over 8 percent of the shares issued. CDL previously said it would not make another takeover offer for at least another nine months.
