Shareholders of Hirco Plc on Wednesday rejected a proposal by hedge fund Laxey Partners to oust Niranjan Hiranandani as chairman and revamp the board.
Shareholders of Hirco Plc on Wednesday rejected a proposal by hedge fund Laxey Partners to oust Niranjan Hiranandani as chairman and revamp the board.
“Around 65% of Hirco shareholders have voted against Laxey’s proposal in the extraordinary general meeting today (May 6) in Zurich,” Hiranandani, chairman of developer Hiranandani Group, said. As a result, he continues to be the chairman of the group’s investment arm, listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) in London.
Speaking to DNA Money, Hiranandani held out an olive branch to the disgruntled. “The idea now is to focus on the business of business. After all they are shareholders of the company,” he said.
In February, Laxey Partners, which holds a 10.05% stake in Hirco, had called for an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders to remove Hiranandani and two other directors and appoint its nominees on the board.
However, Hirco went all out and contacted several shareholders to garner support for Hiranandani.
Two major shareholders, HSBC and Standard Life, with over 13% and 10% stake, respectively, had already expressed their support for Hiranandani.
In December, Hirco had proposed a reverse merger of Hirco Developments and Hiranandani Investment Co with itself.
The move, according to a notice to the shareholders, was aimed at becoming an integrated development company by taking direct control of Hiranandani Group’s projects in Panvel near Mumbai, and in Chennai.
Hirco was forced to abandon its plans following a backlash among investors led by Laxey Partners, which claimed support of majority shareholders.
With agency inputs.
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