TOKYO :Investors in Japanese elevator maker Fujitec Co Ltd voted on Friday to oust three of five incumbent outside directors and elected four of six new directors nominated by an activist fund, a person familiar with the matter said.
The result of the vote, taken at an emergency general shareholders’ meeting, represent a major victory for Oasis Management, Fujitec’s top shareholder with a 17 per cent stake. The three rejected incumbents included the chairman of the board.
The vote could also carry broader significance for the activist investor sector. Activists have had little success in Japan to date in having their nominees make it into boardrooms when, as in the Fujitec case, their picks are opposed by the target company.
Oasis sought to replace the external directors on an eight-strong board with its own candidates to blunt what the Hong Kong-based fund claims is the undue influence of the company’s founding family.
The shareholders also rejected two additional directors nominated by the company, according to the source, who declined to be identified as the results have not yet been made public.
