CBD
Former NSW premier Morris Iemma has been clean bowled from one of the country's most prestigious boards, losing his position as a trustee of the Sydney Cricket Ground after a single three-year term.
Labor stalwart Iemma was among four trustees given out on Tuesday, but the Sports Minister in the state's Liberal government, Graham Annesley, declined to give a reason for the umpire's raised finger.
"He just wasn't reappointed," Annesley's spokesman told CBD.
Also leaving the board are Paul Warren, Maple-Brown Abbott chairman John Cloney and Kaye Schofield, who is believed to have stepped aside.
Newly knighted with the flat side of a cricket bat are Harvey Norman chief executive Katie Page, rugby union figure Ron Graham, women's cricket champion Lyn Larsen and DEC Australia boss Nihal Gupta.
Chairman Rodney Cavalier's Labor roots have not stopped the O'Farrell government giving him another four years, while talkback squawker Alan Jones, Business Council of Australia boss Tony Shepherd and Test cricketer Steve Waugh also got the nod.
InnoPac offer
Former Singaporean KFC operator InnoPac Holdings has not chickened out of its takeover bid for "Diamond" Joe Gutnick vehicle Merlin Diamonds, extending its offer in a bid to mop up minorities like so much gravy.
While Gutnick glories in the triple title of executive chairman, managing director and chief executive, he is all but gone from the share register, having somewhat inexplicably sold most of his scrip earlier this year about the same time as he was recommending the InnoPac offer.
On Tuesday, InnoPac told the ASX it had acceptances for 68.27 per cent of Merlin stock. The offer had been due to close on June 28 but will now close at the end of this week.
Innopac has also extended its offer to take in $8 million in convertible notes issued to ISR Investments, a company as mysterious as 11 secret herbs and spices and registered in tax haven the British Virgin Islands.
If ISR consents, InnoPac will have more than 73 per cent of Merlin stock in the bag. While the offer is conditional on getting 90 per cent acceptance, the zinger is that InnoPac is also threatening to waive that condition, which would leave remaining minorities in a rather unhappy position.
Merry-go-round
On the face of things, Queensland Mining Corporation looks like the most indecisive company on the ASX. The market minnow, which trades under the code QMN, began the year based in Sydney but soon decided that Perth was a cheaper place to locate a company with assets in central Queensland.
Not surprisingly, the plan to find "lower overhead costs" in a city that charges $6 for a coffee did not quite pay off, and the company shifted back to Sydney in June.
During those six months, there has been a revolving door of directors and executives, with at least six leaving the company, some after serving just four months in the job.
But after all that indecision, the company is finally certain of something: it launched Federal Court action against its former boss, Howard Renshaw, on Tuesday. The argument rests on whether proper shareholder approvals were gained before Renshaw was awarded termination payments that QMN reckons were worth $677,333 in total. At its current market cap, that is more than 4 per cent of the company's worth.
This is just one of many subplots unfolding at QMN, where the husband of a large shareholder was this week appointed to act as a corporate adviser.
CBD will watch with interest to see who is in charge of QMN by Christmas, and on which side of the battle for control certain players end up.
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Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…
Former NSW premier Morris Iemma was not reappointed after a single three-year term and lost his trustee position on the Sydney Cricket Ground board. The Sports Minister’s office declined to give a reason for the decision, and Iemma was one of four trustees who left the board.
Newly appointed trustees mentioned include Harvey Norman CEO Katie Page, rugby figure Ron Graham, women's cricket champion Lyn Larsen and DEC Australia boss Nihal Gupta. Leaving or not reappointed were Morris Iemma, Paul Warren and Maple-Brown Abbott chairman John Cloney, while Kaye Schofield is believed to have stepped aside. Chairman Rodney Cavalier was reappointed, and other high-profile appointees include Alan Jones, Tony Shepherd and Steve Waugh.
InnoPac Holdings extended its takeover offer for Joe Gutnick’s Merlin Diamonds and told the ASX it had acceptances for 68.27% of Merlin stock. The offer was originally due to close on June 28 but has been extended to the end of the week and has been widened to include $8 million in convertible notes.
The article reports InnoPac’s offer is conditional on 90% acceptance but that InnoPac is threatening to waive that condition. If the condition is waived, remaining minority shareholders could find themselves in a difficult or “unhappy” position because InnoPac would be able to proceed with control without reaching the 90% threshold.
ISR Investments is the holder of $8 million in convertible notes related to Merlin Diamonds and is registered in the British Virgin Islands. If ISR consents to being taken into InnoPac’s extended offer, InnoPac would hold more than 73% of Merlin stock, strengthening its control position.
QMN has experienced a string of changes: it moved its base from Sydney to Perth then back to Sydney in June, saw a revolving door of directors and executives with at least six departures (some after about four months), and recently launched Federal Court action against former boss Howard Renshaw. The company also appointed the husband of a large shareholder as a corporate adviser.
QMN’s Federal Court action challenges whether proper shareholder approvals were obtained before termination payments were awarded to former boss Howard Renshaw. QMN says the termination payments totalled $677,333, which the article notes is more than 4% of the company’s current market capitalisation, making it a material issue for investors.
Board appointments and trustee changes at the SCG can signal shifts in governance and stakeholder influence. The InnoPac–Merlin takeover (acceptances, convertible notes and the threatened waiver of the 90% condition) affects control and minority shareholder outcomes. At QMN, frequent director turnover, legal action over termination payments and adviser appointments raise corporate governance and leadership questions—matters that can influence investor confidence and company value.
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