Lixil shareholders back former CEO slate at AGM (updated)
25/06/2019 08:36
(Adds details)
TOKYO, June 25 (Reuters) - Shareholders of Japan's Lixil
Group 5938.T backed on Tuesday a slate of board candidates
supported by the company's ousted chief executive, a move that
is likely to be seen as a victory for corporate governance in
Japan.
Shareholders at the toilet maker's annual general meeting
endorsed all eight candidates who had been backed by former
Chief Executive Kinya Seto, including Seto himself, a Lixil
spokeswoman said. Seto's ouster as chief executive last year
sparked a governance crisis at the company.
Six of the eight candidates proposed by management were
elected to the board, the spokeswoman said. Shareholders had
earlier told Reuters that Seto had been re-elected. Two of the
successful candidates were supported by both Seto and
management.
Lixil emerged as a test case for Japan's governance reform
after four investment firms in March called for chief executive
Yoichiro Ushioda to leave the company's board along with the
chief operating officer Hirokazu Yamanashi. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N2172OU
The investors cited what they said was a lack of governance
after Seto abruptly resigned in October and was replaced by
Ushioda, who hails from one of the company's founding families.
In an attempt to improve Lixil's governance, Seto had
submitted shareholder proposals on a slate of new board members
to be voted at the shareholders meeting. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N22429N
(Reporting by Junko Fujita; Editing by David Dolan and
Muralikumar Anantharaman)
((david.dolan@tr.com; +81 3 6441 1526; Reuters Messaging:
david.dolan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))