|
Eximbank alliance asks Sacombank to reelect board of directors
Le Hung Dung, chairman of the Vietnam Export Import Bank (Eximbank), has sent a document to the chiefs of Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank) to call for a reelection of the latter’s boards of directors and inspectors.
* ACB, Eximbank and Sacombank will be the members of a family?
Eximbank holds a 9.73 percent stake of Sacombank, and is authorized to represent the latter’s group of major shareholders (holding more than a 51 percent stake) to call for an irregular shareholder meeting.
Reasoning for its demand for the personnel restructuring, Eximbank said the members of the board of directors of Sacombank now hold a very low proportion of its stake, after the bank has experienced many changes in shareholder structuring, such as the divestment of Dragon Capital and ANZ Bank, and the arrivals of new shareholders, including Eximbank.
Secondly, Sacombank has closed many high value deals, such as buying 100 million treasury stocks, and divesting from Saigon Thuong Tin Securities Co, which Eximbank said could affect the rights of shareholders.
Finally, las year Sacombank’s operational effectiveness lagged behind other banks of similar scale.
In the document, Eximbank also demanded that Sacombank increase its profit target for this year by 15 percent, to VND4 trillion.
“Meanwhile, during the preparation to hold a shareholder meeting, Sacombank must not transfer major assets such as the treasury stocks it holds,” the document wrote.
A member of Eximbank’s board of directors told Tuoi Tre that the document came after an anonymous letter was sent to Eximbank, saying Sacombank has shown signs of selling assets.
“The document is intended to prevent negative actions, if any, from Sacombank’s chiefs that can be disadvantageous to shareholders,” the man, who wants to remain unnamed, said.
Responses from Sacombank
Speaking with Tuoi Tre on February 17, Sacombank chairman Dang Van Thanh said he was surprised at the rumor that Sacombank is trying to disperse its assets.
“We are operating professionally and obediently within Vietnamese law,” said Thanh.
“The selling of assets, if any, should also be approved by authorities. It is not like we can do what we want.”
Thanh added that more than 80 percent of the real-estate assets of Sacombank are its headquarters and branches, so it is impossible that the bank wanted to sell these properties.
Commenting on the demands of Eximbank, Thanh said it is this shareholder’s right to do so.
“However, the reelection of the board of directors, if it does occur, should be conducted as per law,” he said.
Thanh affirmed that Sacombank’s board of shareholders has chosen the board of directors and inspectors for the latest term, which lasts until 2015.
“So it is not feasible for the new board to be dismissed.”
“We refuse to follow any demands, no matter by whom they are proposed, if they are against the regulations and resolutions of the shareholder meeting,” he said firmly.
Questions remain for the case
The director of a stock brokerage company said that given its major scale and reputation in the industry, Eximbank would not have demanded that much from Sacombank if it had not possessed the list of authorized shareholders that hold the large proportions of stakes, as announced.
A CEO of a stock company also said there is large likelihood that Eximbank could successfully acquire power from Sacombank, since the stake held by the shareholders in Sacombank’s board of directors is much lower than the 51 percent of the Eximbank alliance.
However, many insiders also said Eximbank’s demands lack legal validity, and Sacombank has the right to refuse to meet them.
A chief of the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HSX) said Eximbank has made “a hasty move.”
Since Sacombank has yet to finish the list of shareholders, it is not certain if Eximbank alliance holds a 51 percent state as it announced, he explained.
As for the demand that Sacombank not sell its assets, the HSX official said Eximbank is also not likely to achieve this target.
“The decision power is still in Sacombank’s hand. They are authorized by law to sell the assets as long as there are no personnel changes in the board of directors.”
Meanwhile, a stock expert said that according to Sacombank’s operation regulations, only shareholders, or groups of shareholders, that hold more than 10 percent of stakes for at least six consecutive months are eligible to call for a shareholder meeting, or recommend individuals for the bank’s boards of directors and inspectors.
“Accordingly, Eximbank has yet to meet the requirements to send its people to Sacombank’s board of directors, since the shareholders’ stakes do not meet the six-month term as regulated,” he said.
vietnamnet, Tuoi tre
|
