Elliott Seeks To Remove Akzo Nobel Chairman

(RTTNews) - Activist investor Elliott Management Corp said Friday it is seeking to remove Akzo Nobel's (AKZOY.PK, AKZOY) Chairman Antony Burgmans because of the board's handling of the failed $27.6 billion bid from PPG Industries Inc. (PPG).

Elliott, a private investment firm founded in 1977, and its affiliates, has a position representing approximately 9.5% of Akzo Nobel N.V., announced its joint petition to the Interim Relief Court or "IRC" for authorisation to convene a general meeting of shareholders to vote on the dismissal of the Company's Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

Elliott today requested that the IRC compel Akzo Nobel to provide its shareholders with a democratic forum in which Akzo Nobel's Management and Supervisory Board can be called to account and shareholders can express their views about Akzo Nobel and its leadership.

Elliott said a recent survey showed that the vast majority of respondents are dissatisfied with the leadership of Akzo Nobel and all respondents who answered the question would like an EGM to be held. This is particularly due to the way in which the PPG Industries, Inc. approach was handled, with 96% of respondents expressing their dissatisfaction with Akzo Nobel's conduct, but importantly, chronic underperformance by Akzo Nobel prior to the PPG approach is also cited as a contributing factor.

Elliott noted that it has irretrievably lost confidence in the ability of the current Chairman of the Supervisory Board to guide Akzo Nobel in a manner which benefits all of its stakeholders. Elliott finds Chairman Burgmans' views on shareholder democracy to be archaic and wholly unacceptable in today's capital markets.