Major AMP shareholders slams board for ‘fire sale’ of life insurance arm
Major AMP shareholders have slammed the company’s board over a $3.3 billion “fire sale”.
The financial services giant has moved to sell its life insurance business.
Some shareholders are furious with the decision and are threatening to call an extraordinary general meeting to stop the deal.
Hamish Carlisle from Merlon Capital Partners, a major investor in AMP, has slammed the board’s decision.
“This is an outrageous decision,” Hamish tells Ross Greenwood.
“They’ve effectively tossed $2-billion of shareholder value out the door in the interests of simplifying the business.
“I’ve been doing this a long time. This would have to go down as one of the worst, if not the worst, transactions I’ve seen in the last 25 years.”
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Hamish says the board has an obligation to shareholders, given the share price reaction and feedback from investors, to explore legal avenues to get out of the deal.
“We have asked the company privately and now publically for them to disclose any such legal avenues.
“If we don’t receive adequate resolution… we will lobby other shareholders for an extraordinary general meeting and we will lobby potentially for board change.”
He says the board’s “ineptitude” and “management’s lack of confidence” has contributed to a $4-billion gap in the company’s value.