R&Q Insurance is in the eye of a hurricane, and Vida Capital Management is the first investor to go against the tide with a statement in support of R&Q’s current leadership and strategy.
Last week, R&Q received a requisition notice from Phoenix Asset Management Partners, calling to replace current executive chairman William Spiegel with his predecessor Ken Randall to maintain the “best long-term interests of the company.”
“We and other investors have seen the performance of the business deteriorate under the leadership of William Spiegel,” Phoenix said in the open letter to shareholders released last Friday.
Now, Vidal Capital has released a statement to declare its support for Spiegel’s leadership, insisting that a sudden change in management would shift the insurance group’s focus away from proper business execution.
“Vida Capital Management supports the current executive chairman, William Spiegel, the management team and the board of R&Q in their efforts to maximise shareholder value,” the statement read.
“We believe a dramatic change to the strategy or to the executive leadership at this time would be counterproductive and would create a major distraction for the company. This is especially true after the successful recent capital raise, which allows the company to focus on execution of its strategy without the fundraising and merger distractions of the last year. We look forward to seeing the results that the team can deliver going forward.”
Vida Capital holds around 9.07% of shares in R&Q.
In the requisition notice, Phoenix said it was “forced” to make the issue known to the public because the concerned shareholders “received no real engagement” from the board of R&Q.
The Phoenix board also claimed the majority of the shareholders hold the same view regarding the matter, and R&Q’s largest shareholder Brickell PC Insurance was the first to come forward in agreement with its own open letter on Tuesday.
