Barclays Activist Concedes Defeat in Bid for Board Seat -- Update
02 Mayo 2019 - 01:09PM
Noticias Dow Jones
By Margot Patrick
Barclays PLC Chief Executive Jes Staley came out on top in a
showdown over the bank's strategy Thursday as shareholders voted
overwhelmingly against adding the activist Edward Bramson to the
board.
The result gives Mr. Staley more time to prove the British
lender's strategy of combining consumer, business and investment
banking is paying off after a weak first quarter for securities
trading and advisory services.
Mr. Bramson conceded defeat after his firm, Sherborne Investors,
which has a 5.5% Barclays stake, waged a campaign to push Barclays
to reassess its strategy, particularly regarding the investment
bank. After discussions with its board and executives didn't lead
to any changes, Sherborne proposed adding Mr. Bramson to the board
to force a rethink.
But shareholders representing about 73% of the bank's stock
voted 87% against Mr. Bramson's appointment, indicating limited
support beyond Sherborne's own votes.
Mr. Staley on Thursday defended the bank's strategy, saying
diversification gives it strength to weather any shocks and can
produce consistent returns through economic cycles.
"As a result of the choices we have made, we are now finally
approaching a position to reward your patience," Mr. Staley told
shareholders at the meeting. After the meeting broke up, he told
The Wall Street Journal that Barclays would keep engaging with Mr.
Bramson as long as he is a shareholder.
Before the meeting started, Mr. Bramson conceded defeat in
comments to reporters clustered outside the room. He said that
major Barclays shareholders told him they had been asked by newly
appointed Chairman Nigel Higgins to hold off on any action for now
and that Sherborne considered it fair to give Mr. Higgins a shot at
fixing the bank.
He cautioned, however, that Sherborne would expect to see
results. "Some of the numbers that we see are not encouraging," Mr.
Bramson said. "So we'll wait a quarter or two and see what
happens."
After more than a year of discussions with Barclays, Mr. Bramson
said his next move wouldn't be to keep talking to the bank's board
and executives because "nothing happens."
"We'd have to do something other than talk," the activist said.
"What that is, I think it would be premature to say."
Mr. Bramson said his effort to get on the board had been
positive because it triggered "a public recognition that the
strategy isn't working."
He said: "The only thing we're really interested in is finally
getting the value that's in Barclays released. And the current
strategy hasn't done it."
Barclays's return on tangible equity, a key profitability
measure, has been on an upward trajectory, but its stock price has
declined about 20% in the past year.
Write to Margot Patrick at margot.patrick@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 02, 2019 13:54 ET (17:54 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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